Love Around the World 14: Nepal

Not wanting to spend the day around her, I dressed and after saying goodbye to our daughters, as I got no response from Kevin, I spent the day with Mike as we went over all of my options. He figured that I'd end up divorced as he knew my wife rather well and explaining the conversations we'd have, his feelings were similar to my own. If she wasn't cheating, she was going to cheat eventually.

Our marriage ended for good that night, or it did in my eyes. Arriving home to find the family at the dinner table, there was a spot between our daughters as Jane sat opposite me with Kevin to her side. She'd prepared dinner and it was rather splendid, to be honest. My wife has always been a good cook, and it was the one thing she did try and do each night. I was a good husband in that I would happily help around the house otherwise. I wasn't much of a cook, but at least I didn't burn cereal.

"I've talked to the kids today," she stated once our plates were cleared away, "Mentioning the possible changes in our marriage.

"You fucking what?" I asked, all emotion gone from my voice as I'm sure the glare I gave her was now positively hate-filled, "You dragged our fucking kids into this?"

"Come on, Dad!" Kevin exclaimed, "Is it really that bad to give Mum what she wants?"

I glared daggers at my son. I'd been disappointed in him for a couple of years. Now I could only look at him in disgust. He'd always been a mother's boy, and this just proved it. "Let me ask you something, Kevin. Say you had a girlfriend, and she came to you, asking for an open relationship because she wanted to fuck another guy. What would you say?"

"It's the modern world of dating, Dad. I'd allow her the chance to express herself."

"Oh my god!" Katie exclaimed, "That is so fucking pathetic, Kevin."

"Katie!" Jane barked, "That's enough of that language."

"Give over, Mum," Kelly retorted, "What you asked of Dad is horrible. Do you really disrespect him so much?"

"It's got nothing to do with respect."

"Actually, it has everything to do with it," Katie stated vehemently, "It has everything to do with respect, fidelity and loyalty. Quite frankly, you are showing none of that to him right now. And as for you, Kevin, I hope your first girlfriend does end up asking you to go and fuck other guys. Quite frankly, considering how pathetic..."

I patted her on the shoulder. "Easy, Katie. Let's not get overly personal right now."

"I couldn't believe what she told us, Daddy," Kelly added, hearing the emotion in her voice, "I bet you thought we'd agree with your vision, Mum. Is that because we're going to university and they're apparently full of people who are 'liberal' and 'woke'? Think we're bra-burning feminists or something? Little do you know that we actually want to find men of worth to enjoy a romance with, then we'd get married, enjoy a life together, start a family..."

"I'd certainly never ask my husband permission to fuck other men," Katie added, "I'm honestly disgusted with you right now, Mum. I'm just glad Dad has the self-respect to tell you to stick your idea up your arse."

"Well, I did suggest I'd fuck her sister, best friend and mother."

My daughters giggled. "My god, I reckon Auntie Jennifer would leap at the chance," Katie stated, "She's always had the hots for you. I reckon you should fuck her once you've divorced Mum."

"Are you seriously suggesting that you agree with your father?" Jane asked.

Rising to my feet, I could only glare at my wife for a few seconds. "We're done, Jane. I was willing to let this go. I'd have trouble trusting you again, but if you had agreed to counselling or something, maybe, just maybe, we could have worked our way past this. But to actually approach our children about this? Are you out of your fucking mind?"

"Kevin agrees with me. Don't you, Kevin?" she asked, lovingly stroking his greasy hair. I wondered when he last washed it. Kevin glanced at me and quickly looked away as I'm sure my look of disdain was obvious.

"Jane, I wouldn't be surprised if Kevin wants me out of the way because the pathetic little shit wants to fuck you." Jane gasped as my daughters giggled. Kevin blushed and looked hopeful that the floor would open up to swallow him. "I'm not going to discuss this any longer. It's pointless and, quite frankly, I'm already tired of it. Up until Tuesday night, I never doubted my love for you as my wife and partner, the one I was going to grow old with. As of this moment, I'm struggling to love you and certainly don't see any sort of future."

Jane met my eyes and gulped. It was at that moment she probably realised she'd pushed me too far. But she was as stubborn as I was. "This I what I want, Mark," she stated defiantly.

"Then our marriage is over. You know my father's company deals with a different firm to yours. I'll speak to someone on Monday, and we'll get the paperwork started. I don't want to stay living in this house..."

"We're coming with you, Daddy," Kelly stated.

"We're not staying here with you, Mum," Katie added, glaring at her mother.

"Looks like you get what you want, Jane. Just be polite enough until I'm out of the house before you start inviting guys around to fuck. But although a divorce takes a year to get sorted out, I'm sure you'll have your legs spread for a guy rather quickly. Consider it slut training for when you eventually end up going out with Megan most nights of the week for random cock."

"That's it, is it? You're going to give up on us that easily," she said, almost taunting me.

"Quite frankly, the woman I'm looking at right now isn't worth fighting for. The wife I knew was someone worth loving, someone I would have moved heaven and hell for. The woman I'm standing across from at the moment... I wouldn't piss on her if she was on fire. I would call you a cunt, but you quite clearly lack the warmth and depth."

I called Mike and he offered me a place to crash temporarily while I sorted out my life. I packed a bag as my daughters watched on, both of them crying as I walked outside to my ute. Hugging me tightly, I felt my eyes watering as I hated seeing my little girls in tears. They might be twenty-year-old women, but in my eyes, they'd always be my little girls.

Finding a three-bedroom house wasn't actually that difficult, spending two months living with Mike before I was able to move into somewhere of my own, my daughters moving in with me the same day. I made a cracking wage and my daughters both worked in addition to studying so I knew we could afford something reasonable. It would only be a temporary measure anyway. It was awkward returning to the house and helping them move out, not surprised that Kevin was nowhere to be seen. As for Jane, she watched me helping our daughters in silence, keeping her face blank though I could read her body language well enough. She was furious though also heartbroken.

It was her own fault.

My lawyer, a woman I'd worked with a couple of times in the past, knew family law and helped me draft up a separation agreement that would deal with the finances, in particular any of our savings, our superannuation funds and the house and assets. She sent it to Jane as although she didn't deal in family law, her firm dealt with all sorts of legal matters.

She requested mediation in the hope our marriage could be salvaged. I flatly refused and no judge was going to force it on me. We'd been married twenty years. I could apply for divorce and there would be nothing she could do to stop it. None of that not signing the papers shit you see elsewhere around the world. She asked if we could go to therapy. I said it was simply too little, too late. I didn't trust her, and I reckoned she'd been fucking other guys during our marriage and had more than likely been fucking someone since I'd moved out of the house. She denied it completely, but as there was no trust, I saw no reason to believe her.

To my amusement, my daughters were proper little housewives once we moved into our own house. Despite the fact they were studying and working part-time, I would often arrive home to find them preparing dinner and completing other chores. They would head out on a weekend to go to work and spend time with their friends, but during the week, they'd happily spend time with their father.

"Daddy... What will you do when the divorce is finalised?" Katie asked one evening.

"I don't know. Why?"

"Well, Kelly and I have been talking. You've given up so much to raise me and Kelly, and also Kevin..."

"Pathetic little weasel," Kelly muttered.

I kept my mouth shut. I hadn't heard a word from him since I'd moved out. I guess what I'd said had hurt his feelings, and I had apologised to him for it. Katie did make me laugh by suggesting I'd been completely right.

"Anyway, we know how hard you've worked and how much you've sacrificed to raise us. You're now forty-two, right?"

"You know how old I am, Katie."

She giggled, cuddling into my side with Kelly doing the same to the other. "We think you should have fun, Daddy," Katie stated, "I don't mean go out and sow wild oats. Haven't you ever wanted to do... something... I don't know... Go hang-gliding. Jump out of a plane. Ride a motorbike to its top speed. Hike the Kokoda Trail."

"She means do you have a bucket list, Daddy?" Kelly asked.

"Not really, to be honest. I mean, my intention was always to retire when your mother did as we would have easily been able to afford to retire a little earlier than most, and I guess we had tentative plans to do a few things."

"How much are you looking at getting from your half of the house?" Katie wondered.

"Well, if you must know, once I get half plus the payout from all other assets, I'll be looking at least half a million bucks. Probably more, to be honest. We paid the mortgage off a couple of years back, so the house is completely ours."

Both of my girls turned towards me. "Daddy, we think you should write a bucket list. Maybe the top ten things you want to do. Perhaps places to see. Have you ever left Australia?" Katie asked.

"Only for our honeymoon. Went to Fiji for a week."

"Is there anywhere you'd like to go?" Kelly wondered.

"Hell, there's a whole list of places I've always wanted to visit."

"Can we help you write a list?"

"Yes, Katie. You can both help me."

My girls were rather excited though I tempered that by suggesting we sit down over the weekend and really give it some thought. When I asked about leaving the country if that's what they were actually suggesting I do, they assured me that they had friends they could go and live with. They almost insisted that I go off and do my own thing.

Sitting down over lunch on Saturday, Katie had a pad of paper and a pen, Kelly had her laptop while I sat between them. "Okay, Daddy. Ten things that you'd really like to do. It can be absolutely anything."

"Sleep with Jennifer is number one," I stated to their amusement, making them laugh out loud, "I'm only half-joking, to be honest."

"I reckon she'd leap at the chance for just one night with you," Kelly stated, "But I won't put it on the list just yet. Be serious, Daddy!"

"Okay. Okay... Hmmm... Why don't I go one thing per continent to start with?"

"Good idea," Kate replied.

"Right, North America... I'd love to see the Grand Canyon. I'd rather see natural wonders than visit cities. Either the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone. South America... Hmmm... A hike to Machu Picchu is something I'd love to do. Africa... I'd love to do a safari. The Serengeti in Tanzania or the Masai Mara in Kenya."

"These are all great ideas, Daddy," Katie stated as she was writing them all down.

"Europe... Okay, this is where there are plenty of natural wonders, but cities are where it's at. I'd just love to do a tour of Italy. Rome. Venice. Florence. Cinque Terre and the Amalfi Coast."

"What about Asia?" Kelly asked.

"Trekking to Everest Base Camp in Nepal. I'm not sure about hiking all the way up Mount Everest itself, but I'd love to go to the base camp in Nepal, doing the trek either all the way from Kathmandu or you get a flight and hike there from a village. Name escapes me right now. I've read that just getting to the base camp itself is quite the expedition. It was something your mother and I discussed doing when we retired. Don't suppose you'd like to come?"

"No, Daddy. You should go out into the world and meet people," Katie suggested.

"Definitely women, Daddy," Kelly added, the pair cuddling into me, "Sexy young women who will put a smile back on our face."

"You don't smile as much," Katie whispered, "We don't really like Mum at the moment."

"Yeah, neither do I," I stated with a hint of sarcasm.

"What about in Australia?" Kelly asked.

"Rottnest Island over in Western Australia, simply so I can see some of those cute little quokkas."

"Oh my god!" Katie exclaimed, "You can get a quokka selfie!"

I groaned as my daughters soon had their phones out and they found plenty of celebrities doing exactly that. Shaking my head and chuckling to myself, we looked at a few photos before we got back to the list. To complete ten things, I suggested three sporting events I'd love to attend. Proving that I was a bit of a petrol head, I wanted to go to the Isle of Man for the TT bike races, the Monaco Formula One Grand Prix, and the Le Mans 24-Hour endurance race.

"And Munich in Germany for Oktoberfest," I stated, "Is that ten things?"

"That's eleven things, Daddy. But that's a good thing," Kelly replied.

At least it gave me something to look forward to as the months slowly ticked by. Working for my father as an engineer, the company my grandfather started one of the largest in the state, I kept him and my mother abreast of the situation going on. My older sister was flabbergasted when I told her what was going on and she was ready to have words with my soon-to-be ex-wife.

Jennifer called me six months after I'd moved out of the house that I'd shared for so long with my wife. I wasn't surprised by her call, admitting she finally got word from Jane as it seemed her older sister purposely kept her in the dark. She arrived on my doorstep that evening, greeting me with a soft kiss on the cheek. Kelly and Katie walked out of their bedrooms and headed straight for the front door, calling out goodnight before they disappeared.

"Think they're suggesting something?" Jennifer joked.

No, we didn't have sex that night. Or any night in the future. We were attracted to each other and genuinely loved each other as in-laws. But Jennifer had a good heart, and would never actually do anything with her brother-in-law, even if he'd divorced her sister. Yes, she thought Jane was a complete idiot. Yes, she thought Jane had thrown away a wonderful marriage.

"Has she told you much?" I had to ask.

She sighed and took my hand. "She's gone completely and utterly wild, Mark," she replied sadly, "Given that you made it clear that divorce was inevitable, I've heard enough to suggest she's pretty much fucking anyone who shows a whiff of interest."

I held up my left hand. "I stopped wearing my ring as well. I considered myself single once I moved out of the house and had the separation document signed off by both of us. She knew that was my signal that I considered the marriage over. We're just waiting for the legalities to be sorted out. Once I get the deposit into my bank account of all that I'm owed, I'll be leaving for a while."

"Where to?"

"I've actually been in training as I'm going to Nepal."

Her face lit up. "You're actually going to do it?"

"Yeah. I'm only forty-two and there's life in this old dog yet."

"She's going to be so jealous. She talked about doing it with you more than once."

"She can take one of her fuck buddies with her."

Jennifer didn't stay the night though we did share a nice kiss when she left for the evening. Resting her head against my chest as I hugged her, she whispered, "If you hadn't been married to my sister, I wouldn't be going home right now."

"Did she tell you?"

"Of course, as she was so fucking angry about it. And completely and utterly jealous. She's always been cautious of our relationship. She knew neither of us would ever do anything inappropriate, but I guess the fact you named me and her best friend... Heard from Denise?"

"She has the same opinion as you. If Jane wasn't her best friend, considering they've known each other since they were five years old..."

"Did you mean it?" she wondered.

"I knew she'd never..."

She leaned back and met my eyes. "Did you mean it, Mark?"

"I knew she would never have agreed to it. But let's say she had returned a few days later and said yes, then it would have been up to you."

"I just think she's an idiot. She'll realise soon enough that she'd thrown away a wonderful man and marriage just to, I don't know, fuck around for a little while."

"More fool her. She won't be my problem in a few months' time."

I did attend court on the day our divorce would be rubber-stamped as there were some financial issues that needed to be discussed and clarified before there would be a final ruling. I hadn't seen Jane in a matter of months by the time we were sitting on opposing sides. She was dressed to impress as always though it didn't really matter. Nearly everything had been decided.

The judge did ask if I wished for spousal maintenance as he suggested that I would be entitled to it for at least a couple of years. My lawyer said it was up to me, that the judge could just award it anyway, but they always like to hear from both parties. Though I could have put the knife in, I didn't actually want her money. I was going to be getting high six figures from everything else I was owed.

Walking out of the courtroom a couple of hours later, I wasn't surprised that Megan was waiting for her. Giving her a withering look, she smirked at me as Jane walked towards her, sharing a few quiet words before she walked towards me. She kept her face relatively blank. Though she'd been dressed to impress, I could see the heavy use of make-up and the lines around her eyes and mouth. It was obvious she'd been living it up since I'd moved out.

"I guess this is it," she stated, "You've got what you wanted."

"Wrong again, Jane. This isn't what I wanted at all. But you have to listen to that dumb slut over there, and this is the outcome. Don't worry, I've been kept up to date with what you've been doing since I left so you got what you wanted in one regard. I just wasn't going to be the cuck you wanted me to be."

"If you'd just..."

"Fuck off, Jane," I stated, watching her blink in surprise, "We're no longer married so I don't have to listen to your bullshit. You have your head up so far up your arse and thought you could browbeat me into accepting something that you should have known I would never tolerate. This is all your fault. The fact we're divorced. The fact our daughters no longer talk to you. And fuck knows what Kevin is up to as he won't talk to me."

"He's looking after his mother."

"Yeah, I bet he is. Quite frankly, I was done with you then and I'm definitely done with you now. Thankfully, our kids are now grown so we don't need to co-parent. Holidays and birthdays can be handled separately. I'd rather not have to endure any time in your presence from this moment on."

She gasped as she asked quietly, "Do you hate me?"

"No. I'd have to care about you to hate you. I don't love you anymore, and I certainly don't care about you anymore, Jane. You're now my ex-wife. You mean nothing to me. We might share the bond of our children, but that's it. All the love I had for you was extinguished long ago."

"Let's go, Daddy," Katie stated, wrapping her arms around my right one, taking hold of my hand, with Kelly doing the same thing with my left one.

"Don't bother trying to get in contact with us, Jane," Kelly growled, "If, and it's a big if, we want to speak to you again, we will be the one to approach you. But it will take more than just an apology for us to accept you back into our lives."