Jared was home without a date or a party on Valentine's Day for perhaps the first time since he was sixteen. Anticipating spending Valentine's Day with his beloved wife, he had reserved some months earlier a table at a little restaurant. As it was, the reservation was honored because his wife was there, but tonight she was with another. And he had deposited her there.
Lisa had been a good wife to Jared. Solicitous, respectful, joyful and hard-working were among the attributes that described the woman with the beautiful body that had somehow ended up marrying Jared. She even seemed to love Jared. Jared considered himself lucky.
He met Lisa on what people would likely refer to as a rebound. Jared was a senior and Lisa was a sophomore at the local college when they met at the college's Valentine's Day social. Jared was fairly handsome in an ordinary sort of way. He dated, but, until Lisa, never found anyone with whom he truly wished to spend the rest of his life.
Lisa had come to the social with some friends. Until the prior Christmas, she had dated a guy with whom she had gone to high school and who had taken her virginity. As Jared later learned, "everyone" viewed them as a really matched couple and had expected that Lisa and Russell would stay together through college and then marry. Russell, however, had the brains to be admitted to an Ivy League university on the east coast, while Lisa could attend only the local college. The distance was discomforting, but the two stayed in touch texting and talking via their mobiles. They were together during the holidays that brought Russell back home, as well as their spring break and for almost the entire summer after the first year in college. The two expressed their love for one another and devoted substantial parts of their together time obtaining carnal knowledge of the other.
Beginning with their sophomore year, things cooled down as Russell obtained an internship and had to hit the books to maintain his grades. He remained at school for the Thanksgiving holiday. Moreover, Russell was not as available for texts or calls as he had been before. Russell was, in fact, spending more time with his new college friends of both sexes, and between the social commitments and hitting the books and an internship, he did not have much time to afford Lisa the time or effort to which she had become accustomed.
For her part, Lisa became increasingly frustrated and suspicious. After all, Jared was good-looking, smart and charismatic, and, very importantly, he provided great sex. He never left Lisa unsatisfied. Not unexpectedly, between Russell being a catch for any coed and his lack of effort and communication, Lisa suspected that Jared was less faithful than she expected of him.
The breaking point was reached over the Christmas holidays. Russell did come home for the holidays and spent time with Lisa, but much of his time was taken up with helping his parents get the house ready for Christmas and catching up with friends. Lisa was now suspicious of Russell and her disquiet began to cloud their relationship. Lisa was most upset that Jared chose to go skiing in Vermont with a group from his school during the week between Christmas and New Year. Lisa could not go because she did not ski and could not afford the trip, besides having other family obligations during the time.
Between Twitter and Facebook, however, Lisa got to follow Jared's exploits during that trip, and some of the photos did not display Jared at his faithful best. In fact, Jared had kept his cock inside his shorts, but his self-control ended there. Lisa was exposed to numerous photographs of Jared in situations that strongly suggested intimacy with the women on the trip.
"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned." (William Congreve,
The Mourning Bride
, 1697). Despite Russell's protestations of innocence, Lisa was unconvinced and furious. Lisa still loved Russell, but decided that she could be hurt now or hurt later, and chose the former. "Don't tell me that nothing is going on. I can tell that the pictures are just the tip of the iceberg. I will not have a relationship with a cheater. We are done." She then ghosted him.
Lisa started dating others and ran into Jared at the Valentine's Day social. Jared was scruffier-looking than Russell, but he had that boyish charm and rugged look that appealed to several coeds. He met Lisa while in line for a beer, and the two struck a conversation, ending with Lisa giving Jared her number and agreeing to a date. They did start casually dating.
Jared was quickly smitten, but Lisa did not want to jump from one relationship into another, and she purposefully dated other guys. Jared understood Lisa's reluctance, but he wanted Lisa. Although somewhat frustrated and jealous of Lisa's dating others, Jared relentlessly continued his pursuit. Lisa became the center of his world, even if she was not always there for him. Jared's friends would comment that Jared was like a little puppy pursuing Lisa.
On Valentine's Day of her junior year, Jared took Lisa to a nice dinner, and gingerly asked her if the two could be exclusive. Jared had already attached himself to Lisa, and so he was asking her to commit to him and stop dating others. Lisa refused to promise to never go out with someone else. "Look, I like you Jared, and I like you a lot. But I need to be sure. Let's give it another year ... please." Lisa did like Jared and enjoyed being with him, but she could not overcome her feeling that Russell occupied too much of her heart to leave much room for Jared.
Lisa did entertain the advances of other guys, but she never dated anyone more than once because none were on the same par with Jared or Russell. Besides, she and Jared were good together. Besides, Lisa and her friends considered Jared to be a "catch." Lisa's mother also really liked Jared and thought Lisa had hit gold. She would always invite the two for any meal that could fit their schedules, during which she would hint about how weddings take a long time to plan. But while Jared would regularly profess his love, Lisa would simply respond with "I know" or "me too."
Two years after they met, on Valentine's Day of her senior year, Jared proclaimed his love and fidelity to Lisa on one knee and presented her with a stunning diamond. Lisa immediately accepted. Lisa's analytical mind had long come to realize that Jared met all her husband requirements. Jared was relatively good looking, personable, hard-working, mature and offered financial security of a good job at a large company, doing what he enjoyed. The two had continued to get along well and enjoyed each other's company and rarely argued. Both Lisa and Jared came to share each other's interests, including sex which was pleasurable for both. 'What more could I ask for,' Lisa asked herself. Even if she still had feeling for Russell, Lisa decided that she also loved, or thought she could learn to love, Jared. She was not about to take the risk of Jared hitting the open market with his assets.
Lisa and Jared were married the summer after her graduation. With Jared already working and now Lisa finding an entry-level job, they bought a home and started their married life. They were a handsome couple, witty and sociable, with some good friends. Although occasionally individually hit upon, both would have been aghast at the thought of stepping out of their marriage. Both were very supportive of each other, and both felt that each would be there for the other.
Still, Jared was far more passionate for his love of Lisa than she returned. Jared did not wear his emotions on his sleeve, but he was somewhat hurt that his beautiful and devoted soulmate never expressed her love for him as much or as passionately as he did for her.
* * *
In their third year of marriage, the two attended a BBQ with some of Lisa's friends from high school. As was their usual
