On His Terms

"How long is this supposed to last?" she asked.

"If you look, you'll see that the agreement expires one year after Lisa leaves home," he said. "If things haven't been resolved by then, the divorce will kick in. We'll sell the place, split the equity, take what's ours and call it quits."

"You're serious about this," she said.

"Yes I am," he said. "Tomorrow, we see the lawyer, sign the paperwork and it gets filed." He pulled a card out of his pocket. "Be there at 1:00 pm, sharp. By the way, you should take a good long look at this." He tossed a copy of the dossier of Jake on the table.

"What's this?" she asked.

"It's a file on your lover, Jake fucking Winthrop," Tom said. "A real piece of shit. You should at least know something about the man you've chosen to replace me with. And you should know you're not the only married woman in his little harem."

He stood up and went to his bedroom, leaving Melinda at the table by herself. He saw her flipping through the file as he made his way upstairs.

The next day, Melinda met him at the lawyer's office. She didn't look very happy, but he didn't really care. They signed the agreement, the lawyer witnessed the signatures, and had it notarized. He made a copy for each of them.

"I hope this works out for you," he said, shaking their hands. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll go get this filed."

"This isn't what I wanted," Melinda told Tom.

"I know," he said. "You expected me to roll over and just accept your infidelity. Then you threatened to ruin my life and make me a pauper if I refused to go along with your demands. It's not what I wanted, either. But it is what it is. Now if you'll excuse me, I have things to attend to. Goodbye." With that, he left.

Things settled into a routine around the house over the next couple months. Tom didn't know if Melinda was still seeing Jake and she never volunteered any information. She never came home disheveled and quit going out with the "girls." Sure, she could've been seeing Jake or someone else in the office, but there was nothing to indicate she was -- no tell-tale odors or clothing out of place.

Then her birthday came around. The kids all bought her a card and some small trinkets. They even worked together to make her a birthday cake and Junior bought a gallon of ice cream. He smiled at the effort they put into the cake.

That night, the kids gave her their presents and they had cake and ice cream. The kids sang "Happy Birthday" as Tom recorded it. Melinda noticed that he never joined in the celebration, but he did eat a small piece of cake and some ice cream when Lisa handed it to him.

But Melinda couldn't help but notice there was nothing from her husband -- no card, no present tucked away somewhere -- not even a note. Later, as he went to bed, he stopped in front of her closed bedroom door and listened. He smiled to himself when he heard her sobs.

A few weeks later, Christmas came around. They bought presents for the kids as usual and took the children shopping. Tom reminded Melinda not to buy him anything.

"Please," she begged. "Just something small."

"No," he said. "Don't even think of it." He could see how bad it made her feel, but he didn't care. Holidays like this had always been special for them, but no more.

That Christmas morning, they gathered around the tree and Tom played "Santa," handing presents out to the kids. They had bought Melinda a tin full of popcorn, which he gave to her, and happily accepted the screwdriver set they bought for him. But there was nothing for Melinda from Tom, and nothing for him from her -- not even a card.

Once the kids were busy playing with their things, Melinda ran upstairs to her room, where she spent much of the morning crying. Again, Tom smiled to himself. Let her feel some pain for a change, he thought to himself. Does that make me a bastard, he asked himself. Yeah, he thought. But so fucking what...

Later, they went to his parents house where they ate dinner. Melinda didn't say very much, but Tom could tell she was hurting. She didn't think he meant what he had put in the post-nuptial.

"What's going on with Melinda?" his mother asked when they were alone. "She looks like she's really hurting. Did you do something?"

"I just followed our agreement," he said. She knew what he meant and breathed out a heavy sigh.

"Tom, please," she said. "This is Christmas. Can't you let the hurt go for just one day?" He shook his head.

"She needs to learn just how bad she hurt me," he said. "After fucking around for over nine years, she thought she could just bat her eyes and get her way. No more. Maybe after she's experienced a bit of pain, she'll come around."

"Will you ever forgive her, Tom?" his mother asked.

"Don't know," Tom said.

"How long is this going to go on?" she asked.

"Don't know that either, Mom," he said. "That's up to her. At most, not much more than 10 years. But she can end it anytime she really wants to."

"I hope you're doing the right thing, son," she said.

"I hope so, too," he said. "But remember, it was you who said I need to put the kids first. And that's what I did. They need both a father and a mother."

"Yes, they do," she said. "But they need a father and a mother who love each other and are working together for their benefit. Maybe I should talk to her."

"Do what you think best, Mom," he said.

After dinner, Tom joined his father and the kids in the front room to watch football. Melinda sat with Tom's mother in the kitchen. Tom could hear Melinda sobbing and knew that if anyone could talk sense into her, it would be his mother.

They rode home that evening in silence. The kids were sound asleep in the back seat and Melinda looked out the window the whole way home. When he pulled into their driveway, Melinda looked at him. He could see the sadness in her eyes.

"I'm so sorry," she said quietly before getting out of the car. It was a start, Tom thought. Until now, she had never apologized for anything. They got the children inside and into their beds. Tom started into the master bedroom, but Melinda stopped him.

"Can we spend the night together, just once?" she begged. He looked at her and thought hard before responding.

"Just tonight, and only because it's Christmas. No sex," he said. She looked down, hurt. Then she nodded her head.

"Okay," she said. "No sex. I just want to know you're there." Tom unlocked the master bedroom door and ushered her inside. This was the first time in months she had seen the inside of what used to be their room. She noticed he had turned over all the pictures of them and took their wedding portrait off the wall.

"I... like what you've done with the place," she said sarcastically. He shrugged his shoulders.

"It's just a place to sleep," he said. "Why don't you go get your pajamas on?"

"Are you sure that's necessary?" she asked.

"Yes," he said.

"Okay," she said. "I'll be right back." He got into his pajamas and had climbed into the king-sized bed by the time she returned. She closed the door and got in bed with him, snuggling up to him.

"I've missed this so much," she said.

"Me too," he said in response.

"I know it's all my fault," she said, tears falling down her cheeks.

"No argument there," he said.

"Will you ever forgive me?" she asked.

"One day, maybe," he said. "I don't know yet. Let's get some sleep, okay?"

"Okay," she said. "Hold me, please." He wrapped an arm around her and held her close. He took in her scent and closed his eyes. Damn her, he thought. Why did she have to screw everything up?

He woke up the next morning and felt her warm, wet mouth on his manhood. At first, he wanted to jump out of bed and smack her, but decided, what the hell. It had been a while since she had given him a blowjob, and he wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," she said after he had exploded down her throat.

"Good morning," he said. "So much for no sex I guess."

"Well, it's been what, four months since we've done anything," she said.

"At least four months for me," he said. "I'm not sure about you."

"It's been the same for me, but I guess I deserve the dig," she said, getting out of bed. "I'll get cleaned up and go make breakfast."

"Good idea," he told her. "Besides, the kids will be up soon."

The rest of the day went pretty well. Tom spent as much time as possible with the kids after clearing the snow off the walkway and the driveway. Melinda puttered around in the kitchen and cleaned up the house from the previous day. Several times, she caught herself crying. This was the first time her husband had given her nothing for Christmas -- not even a card. Christmas had always been her favorite holiday and it hurt to think that she got more from strangers and local businesses than her own husband.

The rest of the week went by fast. Both Tom and Melinda were off work so they spent as much time as they could with the kids. Melinda knew better than to push her husband for another night in bed, but she secretly hoped he would invite her anyway. She spent her nights alone, in her bed, sobbing into her pillow, realizing, probably for the very first time, what she had thrown away for some illicit sex.

A week after Christmas, the family sat in front of their huge television, watching the ball drop in New York City. They counted down with the host of the program: "5...4...3...2...1...Happy New Year!" They hugged each other and could hear fireworks going off in the neighborhood. Tom turned to Melinda and without thinking, kissed her as hard as he could, for the first time in several months. When he pulled back, he saw tears in her eyes.

"Tom," she said. "Do you want to hear my resolution for the New Year?"

"Sure," he said.

"I am going to do whatever it takes to win you back," she said. He looked at her hard, looking for any sign of deception, but saw none.

"That's a pretty tall order," he said.

"I know," she said. "But I swear to God, I'm going to do it, whatever it takes." He nodded his head. "And if I fail to win you back by the end of the year, I'll accept whatever you decide in the divorce and I'll leave you alone forever."

"We'll see," he said. She grabbed his head and kissed him again.

"I haven't told you this in a long time, but I want you to know, Tom Wheeler, that I love you," she said. He kissed her on the forehead and held her to him.

"I... love you, too," he said quietly. "You know what you have to do," he whispered in her ear.

"I know," she said. "Come upstairs and I'll show you something."

"Okay," he said. "Let's get the kids off to bed first." They rounded up the kids and got them to bed then went into her room. She closed the door and took off her clothes. The first thing he saw was her shaved pussy. This was something new, and he liked the way it looked. But there was more. A fairly new tattoo adorned her shaved mound. Looking closer, he read the inscription: "Prop. Of Tom Wheeler."

"I'm impressed," he said.

"There's more," she said, opening a dresser drawer. As he watched, she pulled out what looked like a leather g-string with metal attached to it.

"What the hell is that?" he asked.

"It's a locking chastity belt," she said, pulling it up. He saw a small opening in the crotch of the device. "That's just big enough to let me go to the bathroom," she told him. Taking a key, she locked the device onto herself and handed him the key. "That's the only key I have, so don't lose it. You can let me out when I get home if you want."

"A key?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. "The agreement says I have to prove to you that I've been celibate for at least six months. I haven't been with anyone since we signed the agreement, but I don't know if you'd ever believe me. This was the only way I could think of to prove it to you."

"When did you decide to do all this?" he asked.

"The other day when I was out shopping," she said. "I wanted to surprise you."

"Well, you certainly did that," he said.

"There's more," she told him.

"More?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. "I'll be quitting my job this week."

"But," he began. She cut him off.

"My friend, Cheryl, says they have an opening in the home loan division of the bank where she works. She says I'd be a shoo-in with my background," she said. "I have an interview scheduled for Tuesday morning. Once I'm hired, I'll quit my job at the real estate office. My base pay will be a bit more, and I'll lose the commission checks I've been getting, but the benefits are better and I'll have a regular schedule."

"That bank is only a couple blocks from where I work," he said. "Maybe we could carpool together if you want." She nodded her head.

"That's what I was thinking," she said. He thought for a moment and finally nodded his head.

"Okay, we'll give it a try," he said. "Six months, remember?"

"I know," she said. "And at the end of that time, I'll get tested."

"What made you decide to do all this?" he asked.

"You know how I feel about birthdays, Christmas and stuff," she said. "I felt so bad when you didn't get me anything for my birthday, and I thought maybe you would relent on Christmas. But you didn't, and I felt so... alone. It hurt so bad. Your mother talked to me while you guys were watching football, and she made me realize I had to go the extra mile if I ever wanted to get you back. I realized how bad I hurt you, and I never want to hurt you again. And I can't live like this anymore. It's killing me, inside."

"Well, I am impressed that you would go this far," he said. "And a deal is a deal. Alright, I'll give you your six months. We'll see how things go after that."

"Thank you," she said, wrapping her arms around Tom.

"What about Jake?" Tom asked. "When was the last time you saw him?"

"I called it quits when we signed the paperwork," she said. "I read that dossier you had on him and I felt so ashamed. He called me and I told him I couldn't do it anymore. He wasn't too happy."

"I'll bet," Tom said. "How did you hook up with him to begin with?"

"I worked with him for a couple months looking for a piece of property for his new office," she said. "He wanted to celebrate the day we closed on his new space. He brought me to his office, where he had a table laid out. We ate, drank some wine and I felt a bit, well, funny. The next thing I know, we're doing it, right there on the floor."

"Talk about a class act," Tom said. She chuckled.

"I felt guilty afterward," she said. "Then a few days later, he approached me and wanted a repeat performance. I told him no way, but he showed me a piece of video. Yeah, he recorded us that day. He said if I didn't go along with him, he would show the video to everyone -- you, my boss, my friends, everyone."

"So he drugged you, then blackmailed you?" Tom asked. She nodded her head.

"Yeah," she said. "I felt like I had no choice. So I went along with it."

"For nearly ten years?" he asked. "Why didn't you tell me? We could've put a stop to it."

"I've seen what he's done to other men," she said. "He said that was nothing compared to what he would do to you. Plus, he said his father was a powerful judge, and he would do whatever it took to put you behind bars, or worse, if you tried to stop him. When I read that dossier, I finally realized how bad he really was. For the first time, I was afraid. I mean, really afraid."

"And now?" Tom asked.

"I'm still very afraid, but I think he's finally realized that I'm done with him," she said.

"I hope so," Tom said. "There's still one issue left."

"Timmy?" she asked. He nodded his head.

"At some point, we're going to have to tell him," Tom said.

"I know," Melinda said in response. "Maybe when he gets a bit older. I'm just afraid you're going to start treating him different. It can't be easy knowing that he's not your real son."

"I may not be his sperm donor, but he's my son in every other way that matters," Tom said. "He's not to blame for what happened. Besides, I loved him before I learned about all this, and I'll always love him."

"Thank you," she said, wrapping her arms around him. "I know I don't deserve another chance, but thank you for letting me try."

Melinda followed through with her promise. She went to her interview and was hired on the spot. Then she put in her two week notice at the real estate office. She and Tom carpooled to and from work and things looked to be improving. Every morning started with Tom locking her chastity belt and each day ended with him removing it. They abstained from sex according to their agreement, but they ended each day with a goodnight kiss and a snuggle.

Two months later, Tom was at a bar with some of his friends from the office after work. He had just picked up his drink when he heard a shout from behind him.

"Wheeler! You motherfucking sonofabitch! I'm gonna kill your fucking ass," yelled an angry man. Tom turned around and was about to say something when he was struck across the face with a pool cue. He felt the pain of the cue, and saw stars, then nothing.

The next thing he remembered was waking up in a hospital bed with something in his throat. As he came to, he saw medical people around him checking his vitals and looking in his eyes.

"Doctor! He's waking up," he heard a nurse call out. He could make out a man in a white medical smock come in and lean over him, checking him out.

"Alright, get that breathing tube out," he ordered. "It's alright, Mr. Wheeler," the doctor said. "Hang on, we're going to get the breathing tube out and look you over."

After they got the tube out, they examined him thoroughly. Melinda and another man in a dark suit came into the room and the doctor stood up.

"I'm glad you're here," he told them.

"What happened?" Tom croaked.

"We've had you in a medically-induced coma for the last five days," the doctor said. "We wanted to make sure the swelling around your brain healed."

"Five days?" Tom asked.

"Yes," the doctor said. "We almost lost you a time or two."

"Damn," Tom said. "How did this happen?"

"It was Jake," Melinda said. "He texted me after work, and I told him to leave me alone or I would file charges. He went nuts and came after you. It took several guys to pull him off you. The cops charged him with attempted murder."

"Is he still in jail?" Tom asked.

"No," the suit said. "His father managed to get him out on bail."

"Goddammit," Tom said.

"Don't worry," the suit said. "We've got officers watching him and he's wearing an ankle bracelet. If he so much as crosses the street wrong, we'll get him."

"What about the kids?" Tom asked.

"They're at your parents house," Melinda said.

"Well, we have another problem," the doctor said, putting an x-ray on the display box.

"What's that?" Tom asked. The doctor motioned for the suit to leave the room. He closed the door for privacy and returned to the display.

"That," the doctor said, pointing to a dark area of the image. "We have a specialist looking at it, but it appears that you may have an inoperable brain tumor."

"What?" Melinda asked, shocked.

"In my experience, a tumor of that size and in that location is generally inoperable," the doctor said. "Have you experienced any headaches or had trouble with your vision lately?"

"Some," Tom said. "I figured it was just stress."

"Well, I'm sure that played a role, but I believe this is the source of those headaches," the doctor said.

"And you say it's inoperable?" Tom asked.

"That's been my experience," the doctor said. "That's why we have a specialist on the case."

"How long do I have?" Tom said.

"Hard to say," the doctor said. "Maybe six months, a year at the outside." Melinda broke down crying when the doctor said that.

"Is it possible you could be mistaken?" Tom said.

"Yes, it is," the doctor said. "That's why we have a specialist on the case. We're going to keep you here for a few more days, and they'll run more tests while you're here. In the meantime, I suggest you rest."