Consequences - Joyce

This is the tenth in a series called consequences. Thanks to LadyCibelle for her editing and comments. Always makes for a better story.

Consequences Joyce

Prologue

I came home from work that Wednesday a little early since I wanted to change into a fresh shirt before the dinner. It was business, a meeting with a couple of contractors that wanted to hire my firm to do some demolition. Since Joyce wasn't going to be with me, I didn't much care how I looked, but I wanted a clean shirt for comfort. I sweated a lot in my job.

I pulled in and saw Eileen's car and couldn't stop a moan of disappointment. Eileen was Joyce's sister. She didn't like me and I didn't like her and we both admitted it, so to see her there was an unpleasant surprise. Fortunately, I wasn't going to be there long. When I walked into the kitchen from the garage, I saw Eileen but no Joyce.

I threw my briefcase on the counter and just stared at her. She was a few years older than her sister and was a beautiful woman, I had to admit, but it was her personality I disliked. "What the hell are you doing here? Did you come to gloat with your sister? Make a big deal about the error of my ways? Rub salt in the wound?"

"Joyce asked me to come over to sit with the kids while you're both out for the evening. I didn't expect you home till after 9 or 10 tonight. Why so early? Dinner cancelled? You got fired maybe?"

"It's my fucking company dumb ass, so who the hell is going to fire me? I just want to get a clean shirt. And what do you mean both of us out? Joyce isn't going with me."

Just then, Joyce walked into the kitchen, all dressed up to go out. Her black dress, with its deep 'V' neckline, coming just above the knee was far too revealing for a casual night with the girls, and her makeup was far more than usual. I looked again and unless I was mistaken, she didn't have on a bra. Her whole countenance bothered me and suggested things I didn't like. She stopped when she saw me and her face clouded up. She hadn't planned on seeing me tonight, that was obvious from the way she looked.

She glared at me. "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be out to dinner with clients"

She seemed a little nervous, and the way she looked at me was just a little strange. What the hell was she up to? I didn't like what I was thinking.

I looked her up and down and then asked "What's the deal? You wouldn't go with me to dinner but now you're going out dressed like that? Who are you planning to go out with? You don't dress that way for the girls."

"None of your business. I have plans of my own." She was about to say more when the doorbell rang. She jerked in surprise and I noticed a frightened look as she quickly glanced toward the clock and then to me. "I'll get it. You just stay here."

Like hell! She headed toward the front door with me right behind. I was curious about the reaction when the bell sounded. What was she up to? I stopped just inside the foyer as she opened the door. She blocked the door and said something, motioning with her arms but then a man dressed in a suit and tie slipped past her into the foyer. He was smiling at her and he bent down, grabbing her face to give her a kiss before she could turn away. He seemed surprised at her reaction, but then noticed that she was looking in my direction. He saw me then.

I walked into the foyer where they were standing and asked Joyce, "Who is this and why is he here?"

"This is Ron Mason. I work with him and he's here to take me to dinner. We have plans. Ron, this is Russell, my husband."

"Good to meet you." I ignored the hand he stuck out. I looked at the grin on his face, the serious look on Joyce's face and put two and two together. This was a date and Ron knew the problems we were having. He was hoping to get lucky tonight and he wanted me to know it.

I looked at Joyce and the nervous flutter of her hands and knew that I was not going to let this happen. She had to know that. Now I knew why she was so worried when I came home earlier than she planned.

Ignoring the hand he still held out, I said "I'm sorry Ron that you had to come all this way for nothing, but my wife is not going out with you. She shouldn't have misled you."

Joyce was furious with me and lashed out: "I'll go out with whoever I please. You have nothing to say about it." She turned and went to the closet to get a wrap.

I walked toward Ron Mason, stopped in front of him and said very quietly and calmly, "Get out of my house right now. My wife is not going out with you tonight or any night. Not as long as she is still my wife. Leave now or I'll help you out the door."

"Damn you Russ! If you don't leave Ron alone, I'll call the police. I mean it!"

I reached into my jacket and pulled out my cell. I turned, handed it to her and said, "Call 911. Ask for an ambulance for Mr. Mason and then you can call the police for me."

I turned to Ron and said, "Is she worth it? Decide right now. You have ten seconds and then I'm going to beat the shit out of you if you're still here." Funny how even though he was taller than me and outweighed me by twenty pounds, his face registered uncertainty. I raised my wrist and looked at my watch, hoping he would try something, anything. Before I had a chance to see it change, Ron was moving toward the door. He was out within five seconds. I smiled to myself and then turned to Joyce.

"This is not an acceptable choice, Joyce. I gave you two choices: divorce or forgiveness. There is no third choice. If this is what you want, then I'll file tomorrow morning. Either way, you will not be dating. I will not permit that as long as you are married to me."

I walked past her and up the stairs to the bedroom where I changed my shirt. I was breathing hard and my heart was pounding. I knew if I had been forced to go one on one with Mr. Mason, I would likely have killed him. I was capable as Joyce well knew. For that matter, I was not too sure of my response to her if she had challenged me. I was glad I didn't have to find out. I went in to splash some water on my face and then a little aftershave and I was ready for the dinner. I was in no mood to socialize but it was business.

I went down the stairs to find Joyce and Eileen in the kitchen. Joyce was still angry and she was waiting for me. She started in on me almost before I entered the room. "You bastard! You humiliated me in front of. . . . . ." Instead of answering her, I stopped and looked at her, my hand raised in threat, my anger clear on my face. It was enough to shut her up. I stared at her with my fury barely controlled. I wanted to strike her, to hurt her but I savagely suppressed that desire. I took a deep breath, and lowered my hand. It had been years since I felt that kind of anger but I reverted so easily into the threat of violence. I shuddered as I gained control of myself. I wanted to yell, to scream at her, but I simply walked past her, picked up my briefcase, took my keys from the peg on the wall and walked to the door. I was almost there when I stopped and turned, still shaking.

My voice now controlled, I glared at her and said, "I will repeat what I said before. Once I am gone, if you choose to continue with your plans, I will take that as your choice and your answer. So decide what you want and act accordingly. Divorce or forgive. There is no third choice. You 'getting even with me' is not acceptable. That is the same as saying you want a divorce. Think carefully Joyce."

With that I left and drove to the hotel where I was to meet my clients. I was not looking forward to this dinner but it had to be done.

Once the evening was concluded and our goodbyes were said, I settled the bill, took care of the waiters and headed home. It was almost 9:30, later than I wanted but it couldn't be helped. The dinner had gone well, we had agreed on several proposals and I would finish up the details tomorrow at work. All in all, it had been worth it. The job would net me a good profit and would employ a lot of my guys. I was in a good mood when I pulled into the drive. I noticed Eileen's car was still there and shrugged my shoulders. I went in to find Eileen sitting at the table drinking a cup of coffee.

"Why are you still here? Did Joyce decide to go out anyway? Are the kids asleep?"

"Yes to both. She said to tell you that she was going to do whatever the hell she wanted to and for you to learn to live with it." Eileen said this but she didn't look happy about it.

I heard what she said, thought about it for a minute and then said, "Can you stay the night? Do you have to be home at any time special?"

She seemed surprised but then said with an evil smile on her beautiful face, "I can stay. What did you have in mind?" It was a sarcastic response but she could stay and that's all I needed.

"I'm leaving, so you'll have to stay till she gets home. You can tell her that my attorney will contact her and let her know where to reach me. I'll start the divorce first thing in the morning."

I moved away and up the stairs to our bedroom where I pulled down the suitcases I kept for trips for business. I needed only enough for a few nights since I could get the rest of my things during the day while she was at work. I got my toiletries and enough clothes to manage and closed the cases. I was ready. I sat down on the bed and gave myself a minute to cry. I was heartbroken now that I knew my marriage was over. I had hoped and prayed that Joyce would understand how I felt and how terrible I felt over what I had done. I was truthful when I said that it was a horrible mistake and I regretted it but I couldn't take it back. All I could do was prove my love in the future.

I wiped my eyes, stood up and made my way out of the bedroom, maybe for the last time. I walked down the hall and looked in on my children. I was leaving them as well. That part was harder to do but for now, I had no choice. I stood looking at them and felt a tear begin before I swiped it away. This was not the time!

I turned and went down the stairs, carrying my suitcases and trying to forget leaving my children. I had no idea where I was going but I could get a room for the night and then look for a place later. I grabbed my computer from the den and took everything to the kitchen. Eileen was on the phone, I assumed trying to reach Joyce, but she didn't seem to be having any luck. Too bad.

"Tell Joyce that I'll have someone call her at work tomorrow to get the name of her lawyer. And tell her to be sure she has a good one because she'll need it for the divorce. I intend to fight for custody of the kids. I have no intention of being kind or fair now. She's made her choice and by God, she'll have to live with it! Good night and I'm sorry that you have to be in the middle. But then, this is what you wanted all along isn't it? So, enjoy."

"I'm really sorry Russ. No, this is not what I wanted, but you probably don't believe me. I tried to warn her, but she wouldn't listen. Please don't do anything crazy. Please."

With that surprise, I walked out of my house and out of my marriage.

Chapter 1

You probably want to know what my story is. Well, it began almost fourteen years ago. I was young, brash and full of myself, and I had just returned home from the army where I spent eight good years learning to kill with my bare hands. To make it even better, I learned to wire explosives to kill more of the enemy at one time. Later, I modified them so they could be set off by any idiot, especially officers hiding out of sight and out of danger. I was damned good at both and my Captain begged me to re enlist but I wanted to get out and start earning a living and have the good things that money can buy. I came home to Youngstown Ohio, the city of my birth.

With my training fresh under my belt, I went to work as an explosives expert with a mining company in southern Ohio, where they still dug for coal the old fashioned way: strip mining. It was a good paying job, mainly because the so-called experts didn't last very long. Most blew themselves and anyone near them to kingdom come. But like I said, I was full of myself, very good at it, and immortal. Nothing could happen to me.

I did my job and in a few months was making damn near $2,000 a week setting charges for the company in three different mines. I moved around, going where I was needed and I was always in demand. The bosses knew I was safe and could blow the rock with less explosive than most. Even though I was making good money, I was too smart to continue to do this kind of work, so I put almost everything I earned aside. When I had a nice stash of over $20,000, I decided to look for greener pastures.

I went to work for a construction company knocking down buildings, and was making at least as much as before, only now it was under blue skies rather than in a trench of dirt and rock. I found this work to be fascinating and learned all I could from the guys who had been at it for a while. There was a pattern to setting the explosives and for some reason those patterns seemed to jump out at me when I saw the blueprints for any building. I quickly became one of the leading experts at setting charges.

My dream was to have my own company, one that specialized in demolition of all kinds. You'd be surprised how many kinds there are. I knew all of them and I knew how to do what had to be done. I worked for over two years before finally taking the plunge. I got a license and talked to a lawyer who told me how to incorporate myself and I was in business. Cranston Demolitions, Inc. That was me! I was Russell Cranston, I was thirty years old, and I finally had my own damn company!

Within three more years, I was solvent and making money faster than I knew what to do with it. I hired some good men, all with military backgrounds in explosives and demolition and started to expand. We picked up work around the state and then all over the country. I began to use my guys more and more to travel and take over jobs. I was an ex master sergeant: I knew how to delegate work. So I had free time and I began to frequent the local watering holes. Not to get drunk. I never liked the feeling, and I couldn't hold my liquor, so what I generally did was have a beer and watch the girls. That's when I met Joyce Kenyon.

Joyce was one of five girls that came into Clancy's Bar and Grill where I was holding court one evening. I couldn't tell you what the other girls looked like since I only had eyes for Joyce. She was beautiful. Tall, slim figure, nice boobs, long blonde hair worn straight, blue eyes that took your breath away and a face like an angel. She held herself in a way that said money. One look and I was hooked. I swallowed my beer and asked her to dance.

For some reason, she seemed to like me and we danced together most of the evening. Some other guys broke in once or twice but she always came back to me. I got her name and phone number before she left and called her two days later. We made a date and I picked her up at her house. That was the first surprise. Her family was well to do and lived in a very upscale section of town. Not my part of town by any means. Remember, I didn't even go to college and spent most of my time in the military blowing shit up. So, I had my doubts right off about the two of us going anywhere.

But Joyce and I continued to get along great and after two very hot dates, she let me get her clothes off in the back of my car and we did it parked out by the lake outside of town. It was the best sex of my life and she seemed to like it too. Fortunately I had a lot of experience and I knew how to make a girl feel good. I found out later that she was a virgin and that was her first time. Good thing it was a good one. She liked it and after that we did it as often as we could. She was on the pill and I used protection just to be safe.

After a whirlwind courtship of almost a year, I asked her to marry me and she accepted. I went with her to tell her parents who took the news better than I expected. I knew I had earned her dad's respect when he found out I owned my own company and it was well known around the city. But not her sister Eileen. She hated my guts for some reason but it made no difference to me. Joyce said yes so that's all I cared about.

I had a good amount of money in the bank so we bought a nice home in a good part of town and settled in to start a family. Joyce had no problem with getting pregnant and we had Jason, our first, almost immediately. He was perfect and Joyce was a good mother. She wanted to have another baby as soon as possible. She said she wanted to have two children and have them early so we could raise them while we were young. Julie came along twelve months later and we now had one of each. Both of us were satisfied with our new family so Joyce went back on birth control and I continued to use condoms.

For the next seven years we had a perfect life. I loved my kids and my wife and she seemed as happy as I. My company continued to grow and we began to take on work outside of the country. I hired several more ex military types and they did most of the travel and set up the work. I reviewed and signed off on all the plans and went only to those jobs that were highly sensitive or exceptionally difficult. Business grew and I made more money.

When both kids were in school during the day, Joyce decided to take a job with a real estate company as a receptionist and general secretary. She just wanted something to get her out of the house and give her some exposure to people, rather than other mothers who talked about nothing but children. She enjoyed the job and the hours were good, allowing her to be home when the kids got done with school.

Five years went by and it was in the summer of 2006 that I took on a job in Brazil. It was leveling a mountain to open up land for a few very rich Europeans who wanted the anonymity that Brazil was famous for. We had done that in California so it was really a piece of cake but I was asked to attend to it personally. For the amount of money I was promised, I would give them my first child. It seemed that I was enough, so I went to Brazil. Joyce decided to stay home rather than go with me, so I took one of my guys instead.

My only condition was that I wouldn't stay away for more than a week so I stayed there during the week and flew home on a chartered jet provided by my hosts on Friday. I spent the weekend with my family and flew back on Monday morning. Joyce understood so I continued this for the next two weeks.

The third week I was there, the work was finished, and my clients threw a celebration party. I wanted to attend to say goodbye to several of the men I had come to know during my time there. We had a good time, I found their local wine to be much to my liking and by the end of the evening I was drunker than I had ever been in my life: so drunk that I ended up spending the night with a young woman that had been making moves on me from the very first. I wasn't too drunk to remember what we did and it was outstanding. I apologized to her that morning but she simply told me she had no regrets. I did, and the thought of what I did kept me in the bathroom all morning, heaving my guts out.

Back home, I tried to forget about the whole thing but the guilt was really giving me fits. I began to lose sleep. I lost my appetite and finally found myself making mistakes at work. I decided I had to tell Joyce what happened and beg her to forgive me. If I had talked to someone who had been through this, maybe I would have done things differently, but I didn't. I went home that Friday and told her after the kids were in bed and asleep. It didn't go well.

"Joyce, there's something I have to tell you. It's been hard for me trying to keep it secret so I have to be honest."