Missing

"Ok, I'll consider it." I stood there in mock thought. "Fuck no!"

"But it would be nice to have him at the rehearsal dinner." said Linda.

I got pissed off. "I am so fucking tired of you three ramming this brainless jerk off down my fucking throat. You want Randy at the rehearsal dinner?" Linda nodded. "OK, marry his ass then 'cause I am fucking done!"

I turned and walked out the door as I heard a squawk from the phone and as the door shut I heard Linda wail. I got in my Suburban and headed for the beach. When I got to the marina I saw Glen, my boss. I asked him what he was doing and he told me he signed up for a scuba class. I had often considered diving, but when I was growing up, mom and dad considered it to be too dangerous.

I asked where to go to sign up and he pointed me to the office. I went in and prepaid for the entire course. Then I spent the next hour getting fitted for a wet suit and all of the other equipment I'd need. Then I had a class lesson in hand and was looking forward to every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

It was quite late when I finally went home. I half expected to be locked out of the house. I went in quietly since all of the lights were off. At first I thought maybe she'd done what I said and went off to marry him. I went into the kitchen to find something to eat, but I decided I wasn't really hungry. I grabbed a beer and went into the living room. I at in my chair and popped the top on the beer and took a pull.

"Do you really think I want him instead of you?" I almost jumped out of my skin when she spoke. I hadn't expected her to be in the room. I did manage not to spill my beer. I turned on a lamp to see her sitting on the loveseat still wearing the clothes she had on earlier. She'd definitely been crying. I hated the fact that I'd made her cry, but I was at my wit's end with the Randy bullshit.

"I don't know what to think Linda. Every time I turn around you three are shoving that fuck in my face. I am damned tired of it. I said if you want to invite him I won't stop you. But I will not have him in my side of the wedding party. I skipped Dinner at graduation because you three decided to include him. I guess you don't want me at our rehearsal dinner either."

It's nothing like that George. I always felt like you and he were both part of my family. It killed me to know we had hurt you in high school. Now I have you in my life and he's blocked out of it. I feel like a brother has been disowned."

"I stepped aside once. I didn't even get the senior prom experience because the last thing I wanted to see was you and him together. You made your choice back then. It wasn't me. So I went my own way and left you two to your thing."

"Why can't you let that go George? Why does it still have to rule your world?"

"Why? How would you feel if back in college, when you asked me if I wanted to date Michelle I had said yes and went after her? Or better yet if she had come to me after we started going steady and asked me to go steady and I said I wouldn't go steady with either one of you and we'd all be friends. Then come June she came to me and said you and she had discussed marriage and agreed that she and I should marry. So I married her and you were left out in the cold.

That's what I have carried around for years now. I moved on. You found me, and I forgave you. It wasn't easy, but I found I still loved you. I give a shit less about Randy. He stabbed me in the back. I'm done with him.

My half of the wedding party is my friends. He isn't my friend and never will be again. He's the kind of fag that would try to talk you into cuckolding me. I know he tried to make out with you at your graduation dinner." A surprised look came over her face.

"How could you know about that?"

"Your waiter was a good friend of mine. I set him up with his fiancé. He told me everything that went on in the restaurant that night. Randy is damned lucky that I didn't grab Marvin and a few other of the D line boys and go beat his ass. You have no idea how bad those guys wanted to do it. I talked three of them out of doing it after they saw him hugging you at graduation. I told them I didn't want to see them suspended for next season."

"I didn't let him do anything. I love you George and I wouldn't do anything to jeopardize what we have. I'll tell my mom to forget having Randy in the wedding party. I won't bring him up to you anymore. I won't stop talking to him though. Now let's go to bed. We have wok tomorrow."

"I'll be late three nights a week for a while."

"Did you find a lover?"

"Yup, I think I did. She's silver and rides my back. I am in a scuba diving class."

Three days before the wedding Linda came to me and told me that Randy wasn't able to get leave and wouldn't be coming. Our moms actually had the balls to ask us to postpone it until he could come. Even Linda was against that idea. We had a wonderful ceremony and killer honeymoon. We spent three weeks in the Virgin Islands, and came back with awesome tans.

Our lives progressed on for a few years. Then a few changes reared up. At work I was one of ten guys who specialized in bridge design and had the credentials to manage a group. The man who managed our bridge group was only fifty years old and was no were near ready to retire.

One day Glen called me into his office. "George, the main office has asked me to talk to you. It seems they have noticed our over abundance of bridge specialists, and want to take my best and brightest and move them a step up the ladder since Bill won't be retiring anytime soon."

I took a minute to digest what he had just told me. I loved North Carolina and wasn't ready to leave. "I have been instructed to ask you to accept a transfer. Since you are my top guy I will offer you your choice of places. The offices in Tampa, Bangor Maine, Houston Texas, Seattle Washington and Denver Colorado are all looking for good bridge guys to head their departments." I'll give you three weeks to visit the office or offices you're interested in, just bring in expense reports, and I'll get your answer then."

I was sure I wouldn't need three weeks. Linda, I was sure, would jump at the chance to go back to Florida so I was 99.9% sure we'd pick Tampa. I thanked him for the opportunity and informed Bill's secretary I'd be taking time off in the next three weeks.

When I got home that night I told Linda about my meeting with Glen. She screamed and hugged me, almost knocking me out when she tackled me to the floor. She immediately called our moms and informed them that we'd be moving to Tampa.

The next week we flew to Tampa and I met the boss there while Linda and her mom perused the local real estate market. They even looked at houses in St. Petersburg, Clearwater and Brandon. I spent the day with Don Barnes the boss of the Tampa office.

That evening at our hotel Linda showed me all of the pamphlets she'd collected for houses she liked. There was something off though about her. I couldn't put my finger on it, but it was there. I put it out of my mind and we enjoyed some of the hottest sex we'd had in a while.

When we got back to Wilmington we began preparing to move. Linda was still acting off so I started doing some snooping. One night after she went to bed I got her cell phone and checked her messages and calls. There were all the usual ones to our moms, and some to Randy. I noticed that Randy suddenly had a Clearwater number.

The next evening she asked me if I had told Glen yet that I'd accept the Tampa job. I told her I was rethinking it and wanted to visit Bangor and Seattle.

"Why the fuck do you want to do that?" she screamed incredulously. "Our family is all excited about us moving back to Florida and now you're telling me we might move further away? What the fuck is wrong with you George?"

I just stared at her. She had never cussed at me like she was now. "What's wrong with looking at options?" I asked. "We might fall in love with the northwest or the northeast. We like reading Stephen King and almost all of his books are set in Maine, I thought it might be cool to check it out."

She was fuming, and then a look of understanding came over her face. "You know."

"Huh? What do I know?"

"You fucking know. I don't know how you fucking know but you do."

"What are you babbling about?"

"Randy. You somehow know Randy lives in the Tampa/ St. Pete area and you are changing your mind about going down there."

"So he is why you have been so odd lately. You have something going with him on the side?"

She actually tried to slap me. I was quick and ducked her slap, which made her madder. "How fucking dare you accuse me of being unfaithful to you? I have never done anything to make you treat me this way you bastard."

I recoiled and felt like I had been hit. "I'll talk to you later." I started walking toward the door.

"Oh fucking no you don't. You will stay here and we'll talk this out damn it. You always walk off when we have these discussions."

"Listen damn it. I trusted you and you didn't even have the decency to tell me that the asshole was living in the area I was planning on moving to. Instead you go off behind my back and let me believe it was Florida alone that had you excited. How many of these houses are in his neighborhood?"

"Three are."

"Probably the three you pushed for the hardest. Fucking deceitful...."I didn't finish what I was about to say.

"Deceitful what?.... asshole? Cunt? Bitch? Whore? What choice word were you going to call me? I am sorry I hid this from you. But I knew you wouldn't take the transfer if you knew he was there. I want to be his friend. I am going down there this weekend to see him. We are going to look more at the houses since you can't make it down there again."

"WHAT!?! You planned to go there with him and you are just now telling me? Fuck no! You aren't going anywhere with that fag!"

"You have no right to tell me I can't go. I am white, free and over 21, and since we aren't in Iran I don't have to obey you. I have always gone along with you wanting to keep him out of our lives. No more. I miss having him in my life. I love you George, but he is my best friend and I need him."

"Why don't you go down next weekend when I can go?"

"I'll have my period...oh no you didn't. You fucking know I hate traveling when I am on the rag."

"You don't like another thing at that time."

"If you want to insinuate that I am going down there to fuck him I just might. I have the right to go and you can't stop me. If you love me and trust me you'll understand and go with it."

We had stopped birth control a few weeks ago and were trying for a family. Now I was afraid that if she came up pregnant in the next couple of months I would have doubts as to whether or not I was the father. I didn't dare voice this. I trusted her, but not the situation. I don't know how many guys would send their wives off for a weekend with a former boyfriend and not have major reservations.

I sighed and took a deep breath. "You're right. I don't have the right to stop you. You stopped your birth control so we could start a family and now you want asswipe back in our lives. I might have to have any child tested before I let it call me daddy."

"You bastard. If that's all the trust you have in me.."

"I do trust you, but he talks you into shit. I don't like him or trust him. He's always wanted to fuck you, so what makes you think that ring on your finger will stop him? He'll get you drunk, or he'll lie to you until you buy into it."

I was getting so pissed of I began shaking. I balled up my hands in an effort to stop. I just couldn't believe I was having this conversation. I eventually became aware that I was muttering. "Just like that fuck stick to come back after all this time and take her away from me. All I have been is a god damned bookmark. Keeping her warm til he returned." I was only slightly aware of my pacing. I found myself in the living room pacing around. I was torn up and couldn't do a damned thing about it.

I sat and looked out the window for a minute. She came over and sat by me and put her head on my shoulder. Honey, you have to trust me. I want to spend a few days with him. You've had me to yourself for a few years, so what's wrong with him having me to himself for a few days."

"Would you like it if I went and spent a few days with Michelle? Or maybe my ex Jenny?"

"I trust you George. I know you wouldn't do something like that to me. That's why I am shocked that you think I would do that to you. Look, I'll only go for the weekend. I'll be here bright and early Monday morning."

"I know I don't have the right to tell you no. But I can't guarantee that I'll be here when you come back. This is putting such a sickening feeling in my gut, I'm not sure I can take it."

"Please don't talk that way. I will be back Sunday evening. I promise on all that I am that nothing will happen."

I didn't sleep Friday night. Saturday morning, Glen and a couple of guys we knew went diving off of Cape Fear. In my state of mind I almost made three different possibly fatal mistakes. I kept picturing Linda and Randy fucking like bunnies.

When we got back we had a few beers and went back to shore. No one had noticed my errors so I was able to avoid questions. We landed and took our tanks to the dive shop to be inspected and re-filled. I stopped and bought two fifths of Stolichnaya.

I didn't so much go to sleep Saturday night as pass out. I was sick all day Sunday. I wasn't sure if it was as much a hangover as much as stress over Linda.

Sunday evening got here, and I perked up every time a car drove up our street. I tried calling her but it went straight to voice mail. I was frustrated and angry.

I didn't sleep that night either. I tossed and turned all night long. I called in and told them I'd be late. I wanted to be home when Linda got home. By ten o'clock I was pissed off. She'd given her word she'd be home Sunday evening, and here it was Monday morning and still no Linda.

Suddenly my day was going to get busy. I drove to work and went in to see Glen.

"You look like hell George."

"I'm here to talk about that transfer." I told him.

"Tampa is the only place you visited so I guess that's where you are going huh?"

"Nope. I want Denver and I want to be there as soon as humanly possible."

"Denver? Are you serious George? I thought sure as hell you'd go to Tampa. Hell, Jim Varney down there loved you."

"Glen, I am getting divorced. Linda wants to live in Tampa because her old boyfriend lives in Clearwater and she has run off to see him. So I'd like to be in Denver as soon as I can."

"Oh George. I'm sorry to hear that. I'm sure Don can take you on anytime, the issue is getting you moved."

"I'll make that simple. Four or five boxes shipped by air and a one way ticket for me and I will be set. I assume that I'll have an expense account in Denver so I can put it all on there."

"I'll call Don in an hour and talk to him, but I am sure that it will work. I hope you are taking the week off at least to get through this."

"Yes I am. Give Don my number so we can arrange things. I hope to get out there Thursday."

We shook hands and I left. I had a lot to do in the few days I had left in Wilmington. Next thing I did was cancel all of our joint credit cards. I could have used the information from them to track Linda down but I didn't really care where she was.

Next I called and had her phone shut off. I paid the bill so it was my account. If Randy wants her to have a cell he can pay for it. By Tuesday afternoon I had all of my ducks in a row and an appointment with an attorney.

I had a meeting with Richard Nielsen Esq. from the law firm of Zander, Nielsen, Petersson and Carlos. After I gave him all of my pertinent information he looked it over for a few minutes and then looked at me.

"We will not surrender!" he said with a zany laugh. "The way I see it we can file one of two ways. If she doesn't show up in six months we can ask you marriage be dissolved for abandonment. You won't have to split marital assets that way. Second option is we file on the grounds of adultery if she shows back up. Before the six months."

"I'll leave most of that to you. I am leaving for Denver Thursday so I'll be handling most of this by phone. She can have all the crap I leave behind. I'm selling all of my personal stuff that I won't be taking. Can you handle the liquidation of my vehicle?"

"Sure I can. If you want to drop it off here Thursday I can have my secretary take you to the airport."

"Better yet, I'll pick her up and she can bring my vehicle back. I have a phobia about cars."

"Hey! Anything that works for you my man. I'm sorry you are going through this. It looks like you are being way too fair to her but if it gets you on your way then so be it."

We shook hands and I left. I drove into South Carolina and bought several disposable cell phones. I planned on leaving my beloved Droid in the toilet of the condo. I had a hard time not thinking of it as our condo.

Wednesday I packed up the few things I wanted to keep and donated the rest of my stuff to charity. I paid the lease up for two months and told the leasing agent that if Linda didn't return to get ahold of me through my attorney and I would arrange for her shit to be stored.

Wednesday evening I drove to the shore and watched the ships moving about on the ocean. I wondered what I had done so wrong that Randy was able to keep popping into my life and fucking it up. When I thought of him and Linda fucking it was all I could do not to scream.

I picked up a bottle on my way home and spent Wednesday night getting shit faced. I debated calling my mom, but decided to wait until I was in Denver. They were probably celebrating Linda's new independence and laughing about my dumb ass.

I awoke Thursday morning on my couch with a stiff neck. I showered and dressed in comfortable travel clothes. I took one last look through the condo, then went into the bathroom I dropped my phone in the shitter. I then left my wedding ring and an old promise ring Linda had given me back in college on the kitchen table.

I loaded the four boxes and two suitcases into my Suburban and headed for Rick Neilsen's office. His secretary was a sweet older lady who insisted on giving me motherly advice all the way to the airport. We stopped at a rapid courier service and I shipped my boxes to my new office in Denver. Finally she dropped me off at the United gate and wished me well. I watched with sadness as the last vestige of my life here drove off down the lane and disappeared into the traffic leaving the airport.

I arrived in Denver late Thursday afternoon and was met by Don Henley himself. I asked why he didn't send an assistant and he told me that he didn't want his new star being shown the town by a stranger.

In the south we are damn proud of our bar b q. I wasn't sure I'd find good southern cuisine in the west. I found something better. Don took me to a Mexican restaurant. It was just a small mom and pop type place, not a fancy executive lounge with more pretense than taste.

I ate until I thought I was going to explode. We ate and drank Tecate until the pretty little waitress told us they were closing. Don dropped me off at my hotel and told me he'd have his assistant pick me up in the morning. We'd have a quick get acquainted meeting at the office and then I'd spend the rest of the day finding transportation and shelter.

By Monday morning I had a nice almost new Chevy Tahoe, and three leads on town houses. I spent most of the weekend just driving around and learning the city. Within a month I was as proficient at moving about the city as the natives were.

I moved into my new town house two weeks after I arrived. Furniture had been delivered and set up and now I was at home. I had been dreading this part but it was time to call my mom. She answered suspiciously when she didn't know a number.