One and Done

Macy tried to get the kids involved in order to get me to talk to her. That didn't go well. The kids were seriously pissed at what she had done. She tried to confront me about turning them against her. It was Darcy that set her straight.

"Mom. Dad has never said an unkind thing about you to us. You, on the other hand, have complained to us about him several times. Don't go accusing dad of turning us against you; you did that all by yourself."

Yeah, it was not fun times in the Hopper Household. After 4-months, Macy began wearing very little around the house when the kids were not around. She began wearing very sexy lingerie in order to try to entice me to her bed -- or my bed. Whichever worked for me. I have to admit, it was sometimes difficult to resist. She is a very sexy woman, after all. Still, I was determined. I simply would not get passed her cheating.

It was six months after that night.

"I can't do this anymore, John." She said while wearing a transparent black negligee. "I need you. It's been 6-months since we've had sex. I need you to come to bed and fuck me."

"Why not go to your lover and have him do it?"

"I don't have another lover, John. I haven't been laid since that night at the cabin. Now, I need you, and if you refuse to do your husbandly duties, I will have to go out and find someone else to do your job."

Well, there was the ultimatum. I looked over at her and said, "Just don't bring them here. I will not accept you bringing any of your lovers into my house. Go to their place, to a motel, or even the back seat of their car, but do not bring them here."

She got a crushed look on her face, then turned and fled out of the room sobbing. Choices have consequences.

"I don't want anyone else. I just want you." I heard her sobbing as she ran from the room.

You are possibly wondering why I didn't take the opportunity to just fuck her. After all, she is a very beautiful woman, and it has been 6-months since I got laid. Well, that's true, and I was tempted. The problem was that I just couldn't get over the fact that she willingly humiliated me in front of her coworkers. Every time I tried to think of having sex with her, all my mind would picture is her coworkers laughing at me as she was on HIS bed getting fucked by HIM. It was always HIS cock in her mouth. It was HIM on top of her with HIS cock in her cunt. I had lost all desire for her. Sure, she was beautiful on the outside, but all I could see was ugliness on her inside.

It was a week later. Saturday night. I was relaxing in the living room, drinking a scotch and soda, and reading a book. Macy came down the stairs and stood in front of me. She was wearing her LBD, stockings, 5-inch CFM heels, and her good jewelry. She had her hair styled and makeup done to perfection. She looked like she was ready to go one of the classier holiday parties that we used to attend together.

"John. I need you. I want you. I'm begging you. Please take me upstairs and fuck me. I can't take this anymore, so if you aren't going to take me, I am going out to find someone who will. I told you last week that I would do this if you refused. This is your last chance. Please don't make me walk out that door."

"You look very nice." I replied. "I have no doubt that you will find someone to spend the night with. Just be ready, because if you fuck someone else, I will consider that as your permission for me to do so as well. If you walk out that door and fuck another person, I will consider that as having an open marriage where we are both free to have sex with other people."

"God damnit, John! That isn't what I want! I'm freely offering myself to you, but you keep refusing me. I don't want to fuck other people. I sure as hell don't want you fucking other women. You are driving me to this! It's not the same thing! If you don't want me anymore, why don't you just divorce me?"

"Is that what you want? Do you want me to divorce you?"

"Fuck NO! I want you to take me back as your devoted wife!"

"You weren't very devoted at the cabin, so why would I expect you to be devoted now?"

"Because I promised to be!"

"And a bit over twenty years ago, you vowed to be as well. What makes you think that I can believe any of your promises now?"

"Fine! If that's the way it's going to be, don't wait up."

"OK. If that's your choice, then I'll begin making arrangements with a couple of ladies that have been rather forward in their interest in me."

"You are the one that is forcing this. If you go out and fuck another woman, I'll divorce YOUR ass so fast that you won't know what hit you. I'll get the house, the kids, and over half the assets! You'll end up living in a one-bedroom apartment eating Top Ramen because of all the child support and spousal maintenance you are going to have to pay! Then, just to piss you off, I'll fuck with your visitation as well."

"Yeah, good luck with that. You do realize that the kids are old enough to determine which parent they want to live with, right? Wanna place a bet on which one that will be? Go ahead. Go out and have your fun. I really don't care."

She began crying again. "What do you want from me? How long are you going to punish me? What can I do to get you to love me again?" She bawled.

"There is absolutely nothing you can do. You already did it. One and done. You fucked another man and humiliated me in front of your friends. As for what I want from you? I want to coexist in this house like roommates for the next three years. Once David turns eighteen, graduates from high school, and goes off to college, we will divorce and go our separate ways. Until then, we will live in the same house and raise our kids together. If you want to divorce me before that, go ahead. I can't stop you. Just be forewarned that the kids will most likely wish to live with me. That means that I will stay here in the house, and you will be the one paying child support.

"Macy, I simply cannot trust you anymore. I can't live with wondering if my wife is out fucking someone else every time she is not at home. I can't live wondering when the next time will come when you break your promise to be faithful will be. I only have two choices here. The first one is divorce you now, and then the kids will have two part time parents. The other choice is to live in the same house with both of us having our freedom, but the kids keep a two-parent household. We will live in the same house, but we will be divorced in every way but on paper. You are free to date as much as you want, as am I. We will just not bring anyone home with us."

She did go out that evening, after she cleaned her face and reapplied her makeup. As promised, I also began going out with other women. After a month, she seemed to become resigned to her fate. We were civil to each other, and, for all practical purposes lived as platonic roommates as we raised the kids. We acted like a family. When there was a work function for either of us, we usually went together. Had to keep up the farce in public. Of course, it didn't take long before all of our coworkers knew what was going on. Hell, I dated a few of the single women in my office, as she did with some of the guys she worked with. Yes, she was continuously trying to tempt me into her bed, but I mostly refused. OK, sure I took her up on it a couple of times. She was still a beautiful woman, and, after a couple of drinks, I let my little head make the decision. I always wore a condom with her, and it was fucking, not making love.

"So, this is it?" Macy said with tears forming in her eyes.

"This is it." I replied as I hefted another box into my truck. "Thank you for twenty wonderful years, Macy."

"It was twenty-three years."

"I know."

"Yeah." She had tears beginning in her eyes again.

It was a bit over three years later. David had just moved into his dorm for college. Darcy was about to start her Junior year at her university. The house had sold, and we were packing up to move out. We were going in separate directions. The divorce had already started, and we were just waiting out the time before the final decree was given. The assets were split 50/50. The kids' college accounts were already fully funded.

"I still love you; you know." She whispered.

"I know."

"I'm sorry."

"I am too."

She turned to look at me with tears running down her cheeks. "Will you..... Will you call me sometimes? Come see me occasionally? Maybe we can go out every once in a while? Please? No strings attached, just to see each other."

My hatred for what she had done had dissipated long ago. I no longer felt the love I had, but I didn't despise her. I actually saw her as sort of a friend. Besides, we were still connected by the kids. And to be honest, she was one hell of a lay.

"Sure. We can do that. Besides, we are going to have the kids' birthdays, graduations, weddings, and the births of grandkids where we will both be there."

Epilogue:

The kids did forgive Macy for what she did. Their relationship improved, but it never got back to what it was previously. Macy bought a small three-bedroom condo, so the kids could visit when they came to town. I bought a small house with a couple of acres and a workshop. It was a fairly small town, so we still ran into each other occasionally. I did call her, and she would call me. We even went out together a few times. No, there was never a chance that we would get back together, although she did try.

We each dated fairly often. She ended up having a couple of fairly long-term relationships. I was just satisfied being single. I decided I was done being exclusive. To me, there are two reasons to be married; one was to have and raise children. I already did that and was too old to do it again. The other reason was to grow old together and have a companion in your later years. That really didn't matter much to me. I had plenty of friends and family if I got lonely.

"John, I have a very big request. I will understand if you don't want to do it, but I would really like you to at least think about it."

We were having lunch at a nice restaurant. It had been 5-years since the divorce.

"Ask away. I assumed that you needed something when you asked me to lunch today. By the way, where's your boyfriend? Wont he be jealous of you taking your ex-husband to lunch?"

She smiled. "No. He knows all about our past. He knows that he has nothing to be concerned about. Besides, he's the one that suggested I ask you alone. He thought that it might be more uncomfortable with him being here. He is ready to take your call if you want to verify that he is on board with this request, though."

"OK. You have my interest."

"John, Martin has asked me to marry him, and I accepted."

"OK. Do you love him? Have you finally gotten past us?"

"I will never fully get past us, John. I have come to terms with it, though. As for Martin, I am comfortable with him. I do love him, and we are very good together. I've settled down and I am going to spend the rest of my life with him."

"OK, so what do you need to ask? If it's my blessing, then you have it; although, you really don't need it. I have no say in that."

"No, well, I guess it kind of is, but what I want is for you to walk me down the aisle and give me away at the wedding."

OK, where did that Mack Truck come from? Talk about something from left field. My mind just snapped at that.

"Uuuhhh, WHAT?"

"I want you to walk me down the aisle and give me away at my wedding."

"Macy, most ex-wives don't even want their ex-husbands at their new marriages, much less actually involved in the ceremony."

"Yes. I am aware of that."

"Then why in God's name do you think that this is a good idea at all?"

"OK. Hear me out on this. I've obviously discussed this with Martin, and he is on board with it."

I just sat there dumbfounded as she explained her thought process. After hearing her out, I had to admit that it kinda made some sense -- in a really weird M. Night Shyamalan sort of way.

"John, you were the most significant man in my life except for my father. As you know, he is no longer alive. Furthermore, you have been the last significant relationship in my life. Now, I could get David to give me away, but it just seems kind of wrong for my son to give his mother away. It's kind of like I belonged to my son. I just think that sounds kind of weird. Instead, my heart belonged to you for most of my adult life. You were the last man that owned any part of me. Martin and I think that it would be fitting that the last man who owned my heart, gives that heart to her new man. After all, even though you still own a piece of my heart, it is obvious that you do not necessarily want to keep it. This would be a great way to signify you giving it up and passing it to someone else who would care for and protect it. I think the symbolism of that would show that we are still friends, but our love has completely ended, and my new husband now takes that over."

Yeah, that really sounds nuts to me too. I did call Martin. I actually met him that evening for a few rounds at a local bar. He also liked the idea. Sure, he was skeptical when Macy first brought it up, but, after listening to her reasoning and discussing it completely, he liked it. I still wasn't convinced. It just sounded like there was way too much weirdness. I also called my kids to get their take on it.

"Who gives this woman away to be wed?"

"Her family, and her ex-husband do."

Yeah, that just sounded wrong on several levels, but it is what she wanted. I have to admit, though, it did seem that it worked. I was passing the torch to her new man. It actually felt that our relationship had finally come to an end, and her new relationship became complete. Sure, there were a few comments, but it was mostly received positively. It sure made the reception a lot of fun. Several of the ladies came up to me and asked about me beginning a new relationship since I had finally closed out my last one. I think that there might be three or four of those women that may have a shot at me. We'll have to see. At least my weekends for the next month or two won't be boring.