All Comments on 'Bad Things Come in Three's'

It just didn’t work.

Scores 3/5

There are four types of LW readers

1. Those here for the sex - you disappointed them

2. Cucks here for the suck - you disappointed them

3. Those here for the RAAC - you disappointed them

4. Those here for the BTB - you disappointed them

Congrats

This was a very well written story but should have been longer. The premise of the 3 tragedies coming one on top of the other was so agonizing you had to feel for the husband. I just found the ending of the story to be so quick and unfulfilling. There should have been more to the wife’s side of the tale and at least some interaction with his former friend. The story has some much texture leading into everything but to come to a climax and then just ending it. Would have been a 5 if not for the ending.

A sad story, but an enjoyable read, nonetheless.

Thank you for sharing it with us.

I guess the only uanswered question in all of this is why. Why would a woman who professes to love her husband do such a thing to him at the lowest time of his life?

Perhap another writer will give us an answer.

Well-written! Realistic turn of events, including the ending. You will get one-star-bombed because Jennifer didn't end up staked out over a fire ant mound, because some demand that every story posted on LW have the same untimely ending for the cheating wife. This, however, is a damned good story! Keep 'em coming, just like this! 5++/5!!!

Ouch.

Yeah I know the hurt of losing a parent and wife.

Good job writing it well and keeping it real.

Though no action but the drama is still there as the author aptly described the painful situation.

I did a bit of curiosity about what happened to Jennifer and Brett but heck it is what it is. Total No Contact with the cheating wife is appropriate. Maybe a sequel about what happened a few years later perhaps?

Thanks smokeandmirror.

Good start.....please continue.

It was a strong start to the story, with a dark betrayal from the wife when he needed her most... but then it just ended. Did you get bored writing this and just give up?

-

At the very least, you should've had all their friends turn against Jennifer and her boyfriend, ostracizing them from the friendship group and turning her into a social pariah. It takes a real sociopath to do what she did. Jennifer needed some really nasty karmic payback for cheating on him while both his parents were dying.

-

Meanwhile, you could've fleshed out the romance with Emily rather than just leave the story in limbo. As the ex-wife's life turns to crap, then the husband could remarry and start a family with Emily. Having him reflect that good things come in threes too would've ended the story on a positive note.

-

Also, ghosting the ex-wife might be the best strategy in real life, but it doesn't make for a very satisfying conclusion to a story about marital infidelity. They didn't have a single conversation after he found out she was cheating and at the very least, this should've included a confrontation scene. No, letters don't count, because there's no character emotion there.

Mundane

Matt is the type of friend we all need. Honest even at the bad times.....

Good but Rushed and ended too quickly

good start, but what happened? Where is the rest of the story?

Loved the story. Could have been longer.

I like the story as is. Time tends to BTB far more often than the actions of any man or woman. I should know, I've got 91 years of experience with it. Five stars. Keep up the good work.

Did you get bored? Good build up to a rushed ending that just fizzled out.

For your next story, why not write a strong ending before deciding how it got to that point? So VERY many stories get trashed, underrated, marked down simply because the author "seemed" to sprint to the finish rather than keep it as fleshed out pages. Good story, well written but whereas probably a more true to life ending, readers enjoy fantasy. His suicide or revenge, would have made a more finished story.

Really depressing story.

Merry Christmas

OK...I'm a bit confused. Why would anyone even begin to think this story belongs on an erotic story site? Is it well written? Sure. But clearly there would be a much better site for something like this.

I liked it.

The story might have had a little wider horizon.

Maybe his work or other friends than Matt.

And Matt's information needed to be verified.

"Trust but verify", someone once said.

Thankfully our guy had a true friend there.

Still, the story had all the important elements.

Discovery, action and resurrection.

Even a possible light at the end of the tunnel.

And we "hope it ain't no train".

That's good enough to get top ratings from me.

Good story. Powersworder sounds like another typical BTB hound, wife didn’t die from AIDS so it wasn’t real. this was real and yes, the letter did sum things up. Ghosting the cheating heartless spouse was denying her the opportunity to make excuses, cast blame, or try to utilize any of the other typical evasions of responsibility that so frequently occur. I would argue there was a lot of emotion in his letter and it appeared who got the message. Sad story but adultery and death is not a light topic.

I think a very interesting thing about these stories is the explanations for cheating, and the discussions after. This didn't have that. D

A good story with a solid ending.

An epilogue would have been nice, but it's not needed.

His ex wife is and should be in his rear view mirror. There are no excuses to justify that level of malice and afterthought towards her husband. She was selfish and entitled, wanted him to be her rock and never reciprocate. She loves using him and having him, but she has no idea how to love. She only seeks pleasure and security from others, offering nothing real in return. And he told her in that letter. It must have finally clicked with her because she stopped believing she could win him back with empty words and gestures.

Nicely thought through. After losing both parents he would have been emotionally numbed. Any conversation he had with his wife would have only been to listen to a set of self-serving lies - so why bother.

And being British I prefer an open end to a story.

Excellent story. Thank you.

My comments which will hopefully qualify as constructive criticism: The story assails Jennifer for stepping out while David was caring for his mother. But David was spending ALL his waking hours either working or with his mother. David had abandoned his wife to wallow in self-pity. Matthew 19:5 -- “and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’” The author missed the opportunity to explore whether David actually loved his wife when he so completely chose his parents over her. I can see the other side of the story that author never developed -- that Jennifer had good reason to find someone under the circumstances. Unfortunately, the story is just another typical LV storyline about how husbands are always pure and do no wrong, and wife is supposed to suck-it up regardless of how immature and unloving is the husband.

a blah story. 3*

You're missing about a page and of half. Started off well, but petered out...

Damn, that was just depressing.

5 stars. Been there, done that. My heart was bleeding while I was reading your story.

Started off great but went south fast. It was like you stopped caring and only wanted to finish it.

I’m not a BTB kind of guy. I get no pleasure from stories where the cheating wife is shunned, ostracized or punished by the author: people cheat and do dumb things and the universe doesn’t care.

But what does bug me is when the author writes a story that goes nowhere. Where coincidences happen that only exist to further the plot. And at 32 years old, he’s old enough to not think he has a future with rebound sex.

The story seemed incomplete when I read it. I then read through the comments and saw several that I expected. Then I reflected on the story. The story was definitely above average. I thought it was also realistic. While I was not a fan of the ending, I think there should have been a bit more, overall I liked it. Because of the ending, I gave it 4-stars instead of 5.

Only fair. Too much detail on his mother's illness that added nothing to the story. Not excusing her, but at least as described in the story it sounds like he was staying with his parents rather than visiting frequently.

\

I would have liked more confrontation with his wife, starting with her apparent total abandoning visiting his parents.

\

Frankly, I was expecting that his lawyer friend was lying to him to break them up, that he had his eye on her.

A sad tale which at the start certainly had legs but then petered out to nothing. No confrontation no discussion just a letter. 3 stars

Today was a red letter day in LW. New stories from two of the finest new writers (the other debut today is from Gumbo25). Since Gumbo's is 9 pages, tackled this one first. Natch, it's a 5. Smokeandmirror rarely misses. Since there were only 8 comments when I read this, and since page 2 was so short, I went ahead and read all eight. While the ending was indeed abrupt, that just reflects what time it is now (December 2021). Remember that it was only March 2021 when David's mother died. How much karma for Jennifer & Brett realistically could have taken place in only nine months? How far could a walking wounded David go in a new relationship in nine months? Emily does seem like a lovely person, and I think the implication is that more likely than not this relationship will progress into faithful love, marriage and children. As for karma, one could argue that having read that letter's strong indictments may create an internal load that will adversely affect her going down the road. Or not. Sociopaths and psychopaths are not known for their consciences, and even normal people tend to rationalize their bad or unfortunate actions into the rear view mirror.

Because of smokeandmirror's remarks about comments in the introduction, I began reading the story hoping to cast a constructively critical eye. But then I got caught up in the story, and even though I anticipated what the third bad thing was going to be (given that this is LW, after all), I wound up suspending disbelief and just went with the flow. I tend to praise rather than criticize in my comments; if a story is bad, I just don't bother commenting. Yes, there were a few small grammar/word glitches, but not enough to hinder this reader's ability to get what was being written/said.

So now on to comments about the comments.

Powersworder makes good points about how the story could have been expanded, fleshed out. But I think it's mostly his/her own wish fulfillment dreams about the friends turning against the cheaters, the Emily romance progressing, and the desire for a confrontation scene. And I certainly disagree that the letter didn't have character emotion there. Maybe none of hers, but all of his, were in it. And that's good enough for me.

Powersworder should get credit for spelling out what some of the other commentators hinted at, that the story could have been longer, and might deserve a sequel (either by smokeandmirror or by someone else). While I'm content with the story as it is, I get it. Unfortunately, though, a sequel might not have the dramatic elements this one did, since unless Emily turns out to be another Jennifer, all we'd have there is a sweet Romance, and any subsequent BTB on Jennifer would probably not feel as satisfying if David is already engaged elsewhere.

So...as usual, if you want to get the real skinny on all this, check out the generous and always well-expressed wisdom of Legio_Patria_Nostra.

Powersworder's first paragraph says it all. Why did you stop writing??? The myriad of possible endings is mind blowing. Maybe you can turn it into a George Anderson " February Sucks " kind of ordeal since you did not where to go with it.

A bit of a downer of a story but so is life sometimes. As said before, a strong start and a bit of a let down at the end so story could have been a little longer with the ending fleshed out a little more. Still gave you a 5.

Well written but seems incomplete. The Ex-wife walks away with no consequences. I suppose it is a clean break and hopefully the husband lives well.

I agree with some of the comments this story needs a BTB and a finish of the love story

Brutal. A 5

I was really enjoying this story but it only told part of the story. The crux of these stories is the confrontation. Why did she do it? Did she ever love him? What about his "friend" who stole the wife. Too many of these stories trot out "I deleted the texts / messages without reading them". "I never spoke to her again" Why not? Who wouldn't want to know what happened.

Doesn't mean you have to reconcile but I would want to hear the reasons and excuses, wouldn't you?

Being one of the old guys who needs this site to fill a part of each day, I commend you on submitting your story. This story is unique, in that it deal with the worse kind of wife. Hopefully it is fiction, but I sense it is partially true.

Was a good read for a short story. Could have used a little more depth especially the aftermath, but still a good story.

Started as potentially interesting, then you just went with the stock, Grade B “tell her bye and instantly meet a new woman to replace” trope. So tired, overdone, and devoid of eroticism or interest. I sense you can do better, just… didn’t.

The affair must have been going on well before the parents became ill. His being absent just gave her greater opportunity. As written it does feel real. No huge drama and navy seals etc. He is still hurting from his loss of parents so this loss just compounds things. Maybe in real life once he ends grieving for his parents he can go after lover boy somehow. You never know.

Not including even a HINT of “why?” his wife cheated robbed the reader from an essential part of the story. Why write a cheating wife story and not give a reader a clue?

.

That deficiency took this from a 4 to a 3 *** offering.

Why nothing from Jennifer? Because the protagonist, who was telling the story, didn't give a rat's arse about what she had to say. 5* story.

Thought your story was great as is. Don't listen to those who want more. Every story doesn't need to be a novel.

To LPN’s comment about getting “1 bombed” because story lacked a “fire ant” BTB…..that was NOT the issue here, LPN. The issue was that tne STORY lost interest when the author decided to NOT give the READERS any clue as to either the REASONS for the adultery, and/or the aftermath of it on THE AUTHOR’s MC.

.

Or did you think readers want to just read about a random FICTIONAL guy losing his parents to cancer…and “oh by the way”, have his wife cheat during that timeframe…but NOT learn ANYTHING and tne whys and wherefores?

Matt lied to David in order to split him off from Emily. David chose to believe a known slime ball rather than speaking with his loving wife. He never spoke to Emily, never read the supposed PI report, never got any independent corroboration whatsoever. When she read the letter, she realized that David was a shallow, gullible, vindictive asshole. Now Matt fucks Emily three times a night,,,every night. And Emily is so grateful.

LWlurker

Okay story that was missing a few things. Like bad things coming in three's. Too far apart to be considered three. How or when did he throw his wife out of the house? And then the story just ended. You really didn't cover the divorce or the aftermath. Strange.

Come now! Staking Jennifer out over a fire ant mound would be a disservice to fireants! It would be ecologically unsound to introduce such a toxic form of biomass into the fireant's ecosystem. Perhaps a story of future telling could shed light on a scenario where Jennifer finds herself in nearly identical circumstances. She could lose people close to her and Brett could leave because he can't deal with the drama? She might explain why she did what she did to her first husband in a letter of apology to him. Preserving the comment he made about never seeing Jennifer again.

That felt like pre mature ejaculation…

Good premise and decent writing but it seemed more like a sketch/fragment than a full story. Would love to see you flesh out this premise more!

Good story and sadly realistic. Don't let the complainers get to you. I could see some very sad truth behind her actions. Well done.

One more half baked pointless story

He did it right. Divorce, no discussion. She was a heartless piece of garbage.

4* This reads as if it an incomplete story.

Liked it as far as it goes but definitely needs finishing off, end was way too abrupt, 4*

The story would have been more complete if you had just included a small section of one or two of Jennifer's emails as she must have waned to justify as she wrote that she wanted to stay married.

2 because this is an incomplete story. Jennifer is barely a character, and without something this is just "oh, woe is me" character sketch.

Good thing the gun was locked up. This was fucken depressing as hell. And at Christmas time?

Story was great until I got to the end. It was almost phrased as “next thoughts”.

Liked it. Looks like some commenters have no idea how true to life this is.

*4 even though it is an UNFINISHED STORY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY HATE UNFINISHED STORIES!!!! No RAAC but you certainly didn't BTB!!!! She needed to be given a thorough BTB!!!! She needed to have her social status plastered all over the place!!!! She needed her parents to know what a spiteful and insincere daughter they raised. All her friends needed to know what type of woman she was!!!! And I guess that the story took place in a No-Fault state, otherwise the filing would have been under the ADULTERY CLAUSE, just to make sure everyone knew what she had done and with whom. "keep his head on a swivel" wasn't much in the way of fucking over "The Best Friend"!!!! BTW, there was plenty of room on the 2nd page to finish this story. Maybe a rewrite or a 2nd Ch or Pt???

Maybe it was implied, but would have liked him to verify said adultery evidence...just on the off chance it wasn’t true for example and surely in his state while not needing that additional pain, incredulity and need you would think would make him do so.

Did feel like story needed some fleshing out, to feel more like story and less like related facts

Way to short with too many unresolved issues, a part two would be appropriate or a rewrite with the rest of the story, good writing, just needs more!

So Jennifer has no story worth telling? 4*

Talk about a sudden ending! What about Brett, with his head on a swivel? Why did they? I don’t need everything tightly tied up with a bow, but this isn’t complete, IMO.

Has potential to be a more rounded story seemed cut short to me, more opportunity for lots of angst before the final act in my opinion.

Good for a start but feels incomplete. Thanks for not making it into a reconciliation.

I would have been more forgiving of wife. He left her for his parents in their illness. A spouse comes before all else, including parents and children. You leave parents for a new life with spouse. Children eventually leave. A spouse is supposed to be for life. Her needs were ignored for a time and she sought comfort elsewhere. Understandable. Not everyone is able to shoulder heroic behavior. 4*

not enough info here

There was no loving wife in this very good story, only a cold, heartless, cheating bitch. At least there is some hope in the end.

Well written. Very sad.

Not much happened though.

Sweetie’s parents in AZ were never mentioned again! It is likely that SOME interaction with them happened, even if they did not like Hubby’s parents. Especially when Hubby’s dad died and Sweetie had apparently not yet started her emotional withdrawal. Given that Sweetie was unlikely to admit her affair to her parents, they would almost certainly have provided some consolation to their son-in-law for the loss of his mother, even with the divorce starting! Since Hubby would have appreciated their thoughtfulness, the author should have considered that for inclusion. Would not have taken more a few words of dialogue in a phone call.

4*

Mind you the chest thumpers are all upset at you.

It did end a bit too quickly but it read in a very realistic manner.

We didnt get her side of it, the cliched she fell to her knees crying, the Ill sign if I get 15 minutes to talk....you know the same story over and over again.

Many thanks for a decent story.

Was Jennifer even upset? Absolutely nothing about that.

Definitely a huge missed opportunity and it seems like you just couldn't be bothered with finishing it

I give this a 4. It reads more like a newspaper account than an actual plotted story. Things just sort of happen. Otherwise, I enjoyed the burn the bitch resolution.

I gave this a 4. There really isn't a plot just an account of some events. I liked the burn the bitch but didn't we see any emotional development or any conflict.

Good story but it does feel incomplete. Four stars.

Why do people ask why she had the affair? Even in the stories where that answer is supplied, it's always a cliché. Like 99% of cheaters, she did it because she could and it seemed like fun at the time. Anything else may or may not be the truth. How could you believe anything from a proven liar anyway? Who cares why she did it?

.

Good story. Thanks for posting.

That is it? ***

Some authors just can't muster the intellectual and emotional imagination to tell the part of an adultery story that contains the essence of the drama, the suspense, and the human element: Why? This type of story feeds the Martian Slut Ray plot device. For years the wife is loving and faithful and virtuous. Then, Shazam, she becomes some guy's slut. People are not electronic circuits, that work fine for years, then one day, kaflooee, just gone, toast, dead. And truth be told, even a failed electronic circuit has some logical reason to explain its failure.

But in this story its all about the MC's pain and suffering, and totally ghosting the ex wife. When a machine or system fails an intelligent man or woman wants to know Why, so they can avoid or at least anticipate a similar failure in the future. The self pitying cuckold has NO Clue why his marriage failed, leaving him open to repeat failures in the future. If the guy is that short sighted and averse to confrontation and communication maybe his ex wife just wanted a real live human being for a partner? Maybe the dumb shit should at least have verified through her words and attitude what her behavior implied. Guess the failure of his marriage just wasn't that interesting or worth investigating. Maybe having that type of avoidance and cowardly reaction could help explain why his wife ended up with another man. The story ends without the MC even getting some revenge. What a wimp. The ex wife is probably better off. Thanks for the effort.

great story but in complete hope your going to finish it or open it up to other authors write an ending

Non-erotic is the correct category. Just_Words is just fluffing you. Listen to the complaints, and be better.

-Anon987

For what it's worth, I loved this fresh story about a cheating wife at one of the lowest points in a persons life. I have no idea what the "Anon" are barking about. I would have liked better closure of how he reclaimed his life somehow and maybe how the bitches went to hell. That said, story stands on its own. 5*

A rating over 4, in spite of the folks who clearly disliked the story, tells us they're in the (vocal) minority.

Could it be better? Yeah. Did you overlook the opportunity to tell other compelling parts? Yeah.

Still it's clearly considered by most of us to be a good story as it stands.

You've created a character that can only be admired. I'm sure most wanted to see Jennifer suffer far more than the embarrassment of being served in public or the loss of her assets. Anyone who has suffered the pain of watching a loved one move slowly to death's door with the only solace the dying can receive is morphine had tears in their eyes and heart.

I would have enjoyed the story much more if there was something at all said about the wife and her motivations. She and her relationship with Husband was not developed at all and to me that is the main point of LW stories. Nevertheless, thanks for the story.

anon.1

The story is a good effort. It is a fairly dry read, however, without much emotional impact. The major problem, imho, is not enough "show" and too much "tell" about the relationship between the MC and his loving wife. Typically the more dialog there is between the characters, the greater the number of opportunities that arise to generate an emotional response in the reader. Keep writing...you have what it takes.

The problem is that they are unbelievably stupid. I mean low IQ, I don't understand anything, stupid. That detracts from the story and creates a lack of interest. As far as the title is concerned, the events need to be a lot closer together to be considered "in three's".

Kelcha’s comment takes leaving your mother and father and clinging to the wife to the extreme. He wasn’t spending time with his mom just for kicks. She was dying! Besides, he invited his wife along, but she gave the ultimate selfish reason for not visiting the dying, “I want to remember her as she was, not as how she was while she was dying” Hell has a special place for such people.

A very sad story told very well. I think this slut doesn't even deserve the letter he wrote her. Your lines touched me very much. Thank you!

I gave a 3, because this was a very lacking story. Lack of development from the wife and other parties, and what others mentioned, too much told not really shown. I don't say it was bad but it could've been a lot better if you detailed things much more. Also the resolution was lackluster, I don't expected some bad bitch burning, but at least some sort of self reflection from the wife for the very shitty thing she'd done or something.

Nice start up on the story, and then it died, just like some of the characters!

Did you ever think of the follow thru and and actually having an ending to the story?

There is soooo much opportunity to fulfill your readers and it doesn’t have to be BTB.

I hat about finding peace and eventual love - in some degree - as a way to fill the heart and help erase painful memories?

Here’s hoping?

SW

A rating of 2 as 1's don't seem to count. Read like obituary and divorce notification in back of newspaper. Such catastrophic events created no pathos. No engagement.

***Thanks for the read. Rating would be higher if in Non Erotic they rate hard in L/W. (just saying)

And this is why Loving Wives resembles Divorce Central more than any form of Lite Erotica.

<>

You are one of my favorited authors because you tell tales that are absolutely saturated with reality. However, that works against you in this story because the protagonist is too numb from dealing with the dual devastation of cancer to bother showing, or even feeling, any real grief at the loss of his marriage. While the story packs a punch, it has no uplift. He doesn't even get to tell her off, because his spirit is exhausted.

<>

A couple commenters seem to think Dave should have neglected his mom to save his marriage. What baloney. Shouldn't his wife be interested in saving the marriage? Instead, she took advantage of his inattention like a school child setting fire to the trash can every time the teacher talks in the hallway.

<>

Wife was very young and might not have had the life experience to tell her that a cancer patient who changes that visibly has a very brief life expectancy. So she didn't need to wait overly long. Had wifey assisted Dave in any way, both of them individually and their marriage would have been stronger for it.

<>

Frankly this story reminds me of a friend of mine whose wife cheated on him while he was undergoing treatment for Hodgkins. She was so flagrant in her behavior that most of us assumed he had given her permission to do so. There was no chance of forgiveness once he found out. RIP, Jay Fadness. Your ex-wife Amanda isn't a hotty anymore.

A good story that I gave a 5. No need to rant and rave about Jennifer being a back stabbing bitch. After all, that was inferred in the story. LP

Nice story, a little dry.