Emily's Ordeal

Emily's Ordeal

What would you do if you found out that your wife or husband had cheated on you once? A loss of self-control, a mistake? Would you be able to forgive them? Would you be able to trust them again?

However, what if there was a mitigating factor? What if what you saw wasn't the whole truth and it meant that they had in reality gone through an ordeal? Should they trust you after you didn't believe them?

These are the questions that Emily and Will need to answer.

This story is based in the UK and uses British English. There are a few things unique to Britain like the British pound, a specialist armed police unit and rank of police officers.

Chapter 1

Emily unlocked, opened then closed her front door as quietly as she could wincing slightly as it creaked. The dawn sunlight had long broken the darkness of night. She guiltily climbed the stairs. Pausing worriedly at every creak. She had arrived home much later than she had promised her husband, Will.

"I'll be home by midnight," she told him. Later she sent him a message to tell him they were going to a party, and she'd be back by 3 a.m. When she finally got home it was past 7 a.m. and her hangover had already taken hold.

Emily knew Will was going to be angry with her. She went to the bathroom and removed her makeup. The woman staring back at her in the mirror disgusted her so much that she could barely look at her. Her dark brown hair was a tangled mess. The dress she thought she looked hot in when she left the night before, she now saw how skanky it really was and she couldn't remove it quickly enough. The thong she wore underneath never came home with her. She had no idea where it went.

She knew her pussy had been full of cum. Thank God she was on the pill. Instead of going home, she had slept in a strange house and next to a strange guy. With their nakedness, it was obvious she had sex with him. In her drunken stupor, she thought he was wearing a condom but when she silently got out of his bed, she saw the wrinkled yet unused condom lying on the bed where she had been.

Emily turned on the shower and when the water was warm she climbed in. As the warm water cascaded from the shower and flowed over her body, she began to wash herself. She felt dirty. It wasn't just her pussy; it was all of her. Not satisfied with her cleanliness, she washed herself again and then again. No matter how much she washed she couldn't feel clean, and the first drops of guilty tears fell from her eyes. The tears became uncontrollable sobbing.

Emily felt her legs give way in her grief and she slid down until she was sitting under the shower with her knees to her chest. What had she done? What had she done to her husband? She was scared. Will was going to be so angry with her. He was going to be so hurt. The guy wasn't even good-looking. His body wasn't attractive, and he wasn't even her type. He wasn't close to being a match to Will. She couldn't even remember having sex with him, she was that drunk. If she had been only half as drunk, it would never have happened. God! She wished it never had happened!

Will hadn't wanted her to go out. Months before an old school friend, Dawn, reconnected with her. She knew Will didn't like her. She had a dubious reputation and a tendency to give up her body too easily. Will was worried that Dawn would take Emily somewhere where she would be pressured to do something questionable.

"Don't worry. Babe," Emily had reassured her husband with a kiss. "I'll never let that happen. With you at home, no one is going to even tempt me."

He didn't want her to wear the dress either,

"I need to look hot," she had reasoned. I'm going to be Dawn's wingwoman. I'll do nothing more than some light flirting to help Dawn. I'll never cheat on you, I promise."

But she had done just that. Why did she do it? She felt so ashamed. She was a cheater, a dirty cheater. A slut, a skank. She was trash. The worst of the worst. How would she confess to her husband? She broke her promise. She broke her wedding vows. She had betrayed his trust, and she couldn't undo it. She loved Will so much. She was terrified of losing him.

Her mournful sobbing was interrupted by a noise outside and worried that Will would find her in the shower and suspect something, she climbed out and dried herself. She dried her hair as best she could before she joined the sleeping Will in bed, naked.

Emily wrapped her arms around him and rested her head on his shoulder. He felt warm and safe. That was what she needed right now, to feel warm and safe. Only Will could do that for her and only because it was Will that she was able to fall asleep.

When she woke up, Will was no longer next to her. She assumed it was late. Emily reached over for her phone on the bedside table and couldn't find it. Her brow furrowed. That was odd. She must have left it in her handbag.

Emily rose from her bed. Her hangover was still making her head throb, but she felt better than when she arrived home. Putting on a nightshirt and a dressing gown she fearfully walked down the stairs.

Will was in the kitchen when she found him. He had a face like thunder.

"Morning babe," Emily offered with a weak smile.

"You mean afternoon," he replied looking like her was controlling his anger indicating the time on the oven clock. "What time did you get in?"

"I'm so sorry, babe. I must have passed out. I didn't mean to drink so much. I came home as soon as I woke up," guilt was written all over her face. She tried to kiss her husband, but he turned his cheek. His rejection put a tear in her already fragile heart.

"Do you want a coffee? I can do you some breakfast," he asked her coldly. Even when he was angry, he always showed how much he loved her. Her heart tore a little more.

"Thank you! You are so sweet. I don't deserve you!" Emily told him as enthusiastically as her hangover allowed. "I love you!"

Will gave her a strange look. The "I love you" just slipped out. She didn't expect a response. He never did when he was angry with her.

"Did anything happen last night?" he asked suspiciously as he prepared his wife's breakfast.

Emily looked away unable to look him in the eye, "It looks like it is going to rain," she said changing the subject. She couldn't lie and it didn't feel like the right time to confess.

While Will made her breakfast she searched for her phone. It wasn't in her handbag nor was it in her coat. A cold chill went down her back and she pursed her lips with worry.

"Babe, can you call me? I can't find my phone," she asked her husband. She listened but she couldn't hear that Taylor Swift song she loved so much that she had to have it as her ringtone.

"Did you find it, Stella" Will called from the kitchen. Emily loved hearing him call her that. It meant star in Italian. He was a quarter Italian, and his Italian grandparents called each other that. None of her friends' partners called each other that. She was at first a bit affronted at being called a brand of beer but when he explained what he meant in Italian and it was a term of endearment his grandparents used, she grew to love it. If he was calling her Stella, then his anger towards her was leaving him. She loved him so much. Her heart tore a little more.

After eating a small breakfast, Emily got dressed and said to Will, "I need to go to the shops, girls' stuff, you know." A lie but one she could get away with. She needed to get out of the house. She needed time alone to think.

"Want a lift? You're right, it's going to rain," he offered, his anger towards Emily had completely gone.

"Thanks, babe, I think I'll walk. It'll help clear my hangover. I'll take an umbrella," she as brightly as she could. She gave Will a lingering kiss. He was gorgeous. Another tear in her heart.

Emily walked and walked. The overcast sky looked as heavy as her heart felt. She did go to the shop and bought some sanitary pads. She didn't need them. She had plenty at home and she was a couple of weeks away from her time of the month.

She stopped and sat on a bench and tears of shame began to flow again. The cool moist wind and her tears made her face feel cold. She had to confess. There was no other choice. She had to get tested for an STD before she could make love to Will again. She couldn't deny Will sex while she waited for the results. She pressed her thighs together. How she wished she had stayed at home then it would have been Will inside her. Maybe she could come off the pill and they could try for a baby. Would he forgive her, she had no idea. All she knew was that she loved him dearly and wished that none of this had happened. The more she thought about it all, the more she loved him.

She reluctantly rose to her feet and rain began to pour. In her anguish, she left her umbrella unopened. Imprisoned in her disconsolate thoughts she could not feel the rain soaking her. It did not matter. She was going to hurt the person she loved most in the world, the person she could not live without.

Emily opened her front door. Water dripped from her leaving a puddle around her feet on the wooden floor. Fear and guilt were consuming her.

"Emily, you're soaked! Why didn't you use your umbrella?" Will asked his drenched wife.

Emily just threw herself at Will and began to sob, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to!"

"It's okay," Will said slowly gingerly wrapping his arms around her, not wanting to get wet. "Getting wet from the rain is a little weird when you have an umbrella, but you know, I think I can forgive you."

His wife pulled away from him, unable to look him in the eye, "I did something terrible last night. I'm so ashamed of myself. I never planned to do it."

Seeing Emily this way, Will could not help but fear the worst. "Take off your shoes and coat and change your clothes," he told her firmly like a parent would to a child who was going to confess their bad behaviour.

When Emily returned, Will was sitting on the sofa. His face was ashen and his expression hard like granite. His eyes were full of pain. She sat down next to him terrified of the consequences of what she did.

"Is this what you're sorry about?" Will asked her almost in a whisper as he showed her a photo on his phone.

Emily looked at the photo in horror. A mixture of a scream and a wail came from her mouth. Tears flowed from her eyes. Her body began to shake, and she doubled over in pain with her fist clenched at her chest as her heart completely tore in two.

There was no point in trying to explain it away or saying it wasn't what it looked like because it was what it looked like. Emily was naked on her back, legs apart and another man was between them. There was no denying it. The rose tattoo she had on her ankle was clearly on view. Will swiped the screen and the second photo clearly showed her face.

Will next to her remained unmoved as if he had been turned to stone, "It was sent from your phone."

Emily retched but nothing came out. Her world was crashing down. She could feel the man next to her who she loved above all others distancing himself emotionally from her. She tried to speak but no words came out. Her chest felt tight, she felt like she couldn't breathe. She reached out for Will and grabbed him. She desperately wanted him to hold her and tell her everything was fine, but she knew it wasn't. She knew he was hurt by what she had done. She wanted to tell him how sorry she was and beg for forgiveness.

A long silent scream of pain left Emily's mouth and she slowly got control of herself. She was in pain, in physical pain. It was a nightmare and she desperately wanted to wake up.

"Are you okay now," Will asked. His tone was so cold and unloving that she didn't recognise it. "Why, Emily? Why did you do it?"

Emily began sobbing and shaking her head, "I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know? How can you not know why you did something?"

"It was a mistake, I was so drunk, I can't even remember doing it. I'm so sorry Will. I love you."

"Love me? How can you even say that?" Will asked her coldly but Emily could hear the pain behind his coldness.

"I do! I promise you I do! I wished I never I had done it. I don't want to lose you. Please forgive me. I'll do anything!"

While Will was cold, Emily was losing herself in the blind terror of losing her husband.

"Did you like him? Did you enjoy it?"

Emily shook her head vigorously, "No! He is nothing compared to you. I know we had sex, but I can't remember doing it. I can't remember much from last night."

"Why don't you tell me what you do remember? I want to make sense of it all," his cold tone was beginning to crack.

"I remember promising you I wouldn't cheat," Emily began wincing at the thought that she did just that. "I wore that dress you didn't like. I met Dawn in the bar as planned. We drank and danced. A couple of guys approached us. I didn't want them with us, but Dawn encouraged them. I flirted a little bit with them to help Dawn. I promise you I didn't find either of them attractive and I had no intention of sleeping with either of them. I started to get drunk and wanted to go home but the guys invited us to a party. I didn't want to go but Dawn did, so I felt like I had to go to." Will nodded his head. So far so believable. It matched the message he received. "We went to someone's house. It must have been theirs because there was no one else there. I begged Dawn for us to leave but she wanted to stay so I had to stay so she wouldn't be alone. We drank some more, and then it was all a blank until I woke up. I ran out of the house and came straight home. I feel so dirty. I hate myself for what I have done. For what I have done to you."

A single tear rolled from Will's eye, but his face remained impassive, "Jesus Christ, Emily. How could you put yourself in danger like that? Please tell me you used protection, and you are still on the pill."

"I am on the pill. I thought we used protection, but he took the condom off."

Finally, Will's resolve broke and began to openly cry, "Emily how could you be so stupid?"

"I'm sorry, Will. I wish it never happened. I wish I was with you last night," Emily sobbed.

"But you weren't. You know you're going to need to get an STD test and you should get a pregnancy test too, to be sure."

Emily nodded mournfully, "It was a mistake, a terrible mistake."

After several moments of silence, Emily said meekly, "What do you want to do?"

"I don't know. It is so much to take in."

"Please say we're ok. I'll do anything. I'll stop drinking. I won't see Dawn again. Whatever you tell me to do I'll do it" she begged her husband.

"I can't, I need some time to think. I don't think I can stay here while I do. It's too painful."

Emily turned and took Will's hand in both of hers. Her eyes were wide in panic, "No please, don't go! We can work it out together. Please don't leave! I love you!"

"I'm sorry, Emily. If you confessed before I saw the picture-," Will held his head in his hands. "I don't know, it's so messed up."

"I was going to confess when I came home from the shops, I promise you, but the picture was sent to you before I could!"

"But you didn't."

Those last words cut deep into Emily, and she buried her face into her hands and sobbed uncontrollably, "I can't believe this is happening! I can't believe this is happening!"

Will stood up and went upstairs to pack a bag.

When he returned, he told Emily simply, "I'll be at my parents."

"How will I get hold of you?" she asked desperately. She could see in his eyes that nothing was going to dissuade him.

Remembering she didn't have a phone, "I'll be back in three days."

Just before he left, Emily called out, "I love you!" Will just looked at her before closing the door without saying a word and Emily began to sob again.

Chapter 2

Will did return three days later as promised. He found Emily where he left her, on the sofa. She was sitting with her knees to her chest. She looked a complete mess and looked like she hadn't slept since he left.

"Will?" she said hopefully in a quiet voice.

"I've come to pick up some more clothes," I told her quietly. He saw that hope vanish as quickly as it arrived. He went upstairs and got some more clothes. Something felt off in the house apart from the smell. He couldn't put his finger on it. He searched the house trying to work out what it was. The smell was easy to work out. The lunch he was cooking when he found out about Emily's cheating remained where he had left it. He cleaned it up. Messy kitchens always bothered him.

It was then he noticed a cloth covering a small mirror. Something inside him drove him to search the house and every mirror was covered up.

"Jesus Christ!" he muttered. He returned to Emily, "Did you cover all the mirrors up?" he asked her incredulously. She just stared at him mournfully. "When was the last time you washed? Have you been eating?" he asked her. She just stared blankly.

"Come on, let's get you showered and into some clean clothes then I'll cook you a meal. You need to look after yourself, Emily." Despite what she did, he still loved her and couldn't bear to see her this way.

Leaving his bag by the front door, he gently helped Emily off the sofa and took her to the bathroom. He helped her wash and dress into some clean clothes before taking her back to the sofa before he went to the kitchen to cook a meal for them both.

Emily felt completely numb. The pain she felt when Will left was unbearable. All she wanted was for him to come home, hold her tight and call her Stella with life going back to how it was. She felt so ashamed. She was so disgusted at herself that she couldn't look at her reflection.

Emily and Will sat quietly eating. Emily desperately wanted to cry but she had no tears left to shed after crying non-stop for three days.

"When are you coming home," she asked more in despondence than with hope.

"I don't know," he admitted.

"Do you still love me?"

Tears began to roll down his cheeks, "Yes, but it isn't about love. It is about whether I can trust you again."

"I miss you," was all Emily could reply.

"Your friend Dawn sent me a message using your phone. She wants to see you tomorrow. It is a bit odd that she has your phone. You probably should see what she wants," Will told Emily. "If for no other reason than to get your phone back."

"Can you come with me?" Emily asked her estranged husband. "I'm a little scared to see her."

"She said you need to go alone but I'll watch over you from a distance."

"Thank you," Emily replied unable to show any emotion.

After they ate Will washed up and told her he would pick her up the following evening.

"I've left some leftovers in the fridge," he told her gently. "Make sure you eat. Don't make yourself sick. I'll see you tomorrow," He gave Emily a single kiss on her forehead before he left.

Emily closed her eyes and savoured the feeling of his lip on her skin, but an intense feeling of loss and sadness consuming her when the kiss ended. She missed him so much. She was unable to comprehend how much she messed up. She couldn't eat. She couldn't face going to bed because he wouldn't be next to her.

Chapter 3

The following day Will picked her up. They drove in silence. Emily felt intense loneliness and pain without him but being with him, without feeling anything from him, hurt so much.

"You're supposed to meet at the back of the coffee shop," Will told her with a worried expression. Emily looked afraid. "I know," Will said squeezing Emily's hand in support, "It's sketchy as hell. You know I don't like Dawn; I never have but I don't see any option. She has your phone and that means someone else took those photos. You need to find out what she wants. I'll wait outside for you in case you need me. No matter what happened that night, I don't want anything bad to happen to you."