Three Cheats to the Wind

"You aren't one of those guys who loves it when karma bites his ex in the ass, are you?"

"No, and certainly not like that. Getting sick or something like MS is not anything I'd wish on anyone. And I still have some good feelings for Harper. We really did end on good terms."

"So who is number two?"

I had to chuckle. "Number two! Fitting description for how things went with Zoey."

Zoey

I met Zoey at a party thrown for my old friends, Aubrey and Dennis. They had been married while still in college, and upon graduation Dennis took a position with a large manufacturing firm. At a very young age he was being promoted to V.P. of Finance and had to move to Dallas. All of their friends gathered at the Hyatt ballroom to wish them well on their move.

I was talking with a friend when the room seemed to light up as Zoey waltzed in with an air of glamor and grace. She was, in a word, stunning. I later learned her photo had been on the cover of Maxim about a year earlier. Every man, myself included, had to wipe the drool from their lips.

Most of the men there were married and their wives were with them. Then the funniest thing happened. The wisest general in the army couldn't have organized a quicker or more effective defense than the maneuver the wives instantly launched. Almost every man was physically pulled into a serious conversation with their spouse. I was one of three single men remaining, and Zoey quickly cast her hungry gaze in my direction. I watched her purposely mosey my way and I was instantly afraid that the stirring in my loins would soon be obvious.

"Hi. I'm Zoey. Am I imagining things, or did about twenty women just demonstrate their claim on their men?"

"I don't think it was your imagination. I'm Luc, by the way."

She shook my hand and her touch made shivers run up and down my spine. "Zoey. Nice to meet you, Luc. I guess the ladies must think I'm a threat. You don't seem to have a ball and chain protecting you."

"No, my chain was broken a few months ago. And, yes, you're a threat. You gotta know how gorgeous you are."

"Thanks, but you're damn gorgeous yourself."

I could feel the warmth in my cheeks from a strong blush attack as I scrambled for a suitable comeback. "Well, shall we spend some time admiring each other's gorgeousness?"

Oh, damn, her laugh was amazing.

"I like you, Luc. You're funny. So maybe we should just hang and get to know each other."

And hang, we did. She was bright and engaging. We talked with great ease and I was hooked. She seemed into me as well.

The party was breaking up and Zoey and I set a date for the next evening. She had to leave a little early, which gave me time to pay attention to Aubrey and Dennis. Aubrey was still the wholesomely beautiful girl I knew in high school. She still wasn't thin, but to me she was still perfect. As I walked over, she greeted me with a bit of a scowl.

"Hey, Casanova. Did Zoey get her hooks in you?"

"We sorta hit it off. Why?"

"Be careful. You know Dennis and I care a lot about you, and we don't want to see you hurt again."

"She seems harmless, and I really like her."

"Luc, I love you, my friend. Open your eyes. You're repeating a pattern here."

I was a little upset with Aubrey's chastisement. How could she assume I didn't know what I was doing?

"I'll be fine. I mean, we just met. I'm not walking down the aisle yet."

"Okay. I mean, she's smart and successful so she has a lot going for her. Just promise to keep your eyes open. Please, guard your heart. It's a good heart and you're a great guy. You need to find a woman who is worthy of you."

I wanted to say it, but I couldn't. I wanted to say, "I found that woman, but I let you go."

Zoey and I didn't waste any time. We seemed to be in sync on all the major issues of life. It wasn't long before we were intimate, and six months after we met we were married. I made my feelings clear that faithfulness was high on my list of priorities, and she gave me every indication she felt the same way. She seemed to share the same commitment I had to faith, so I assumed we had what it took to last a lifetime.

She owned a small modeling agency and she focused on being sure to have a good work/life balance. We were married without much pomp and circumstance, and started our life together with a lot of hope for the future. Our home life was warm and rewarding, and our sex life was off-the-charts fantastic. Zoey never gave me cause to question her commitment to monogamy or to our marriage.

After three years of marital bliss, we started discussing having children. She seemed excited by the prospect, but I noticed she never really took the steps needed to get pregnant such as going off the pill even though she had agreed she would. Even so, I was walking on air and felt secure that I struck gold having Zoey in my life.

It seems just when you think everything is right with the world and your life is on the right track, life decides to throw you for a loop. It was a dark and rainy Monday when I faced one of the most horrible days of my life.

Aubrey called my office early that morning. She rarely called me at work, and I could tell from her voice that something was wrong.

"Aubrey, what's going on?"

"I don't want you to worry, but I...um...wanted you to know. Dennis...Dennis has leukemia."

"Oh, my God! You just found out?"

"Just got home from the doctor's office. He said there's lots they can do for it these days."

"I hope he's right. Are you okay?"

She sighed and I could hear her compose herself. "Yeah. I mean, the doctor seemed upbeat. It's an unexpected shock, for sure. He's been a little tired lately, but we didn't think this. But you know Dennis. He's pretending to be upbeat, but I can see through his act. Keep us in your thoughts, will ya?"

She tried to sound encouraged, but I knew my friend too well. She was covering up intense fear and a strong wave of depression. I wanted to be there to hug both of my friends, but that couldn't happen.

We usually talked by phone about once a month and I resolved from that point forward to step that up to weekly at a minimum. She was thousands of miles away, but my friend needed me. Our call disconnected and I was overwhelmed with depression. I felt like I was drowning in an ocean of worry as I stared out my office window at the gloomy, rainy landscape.

I was dealing with that news when another good friend, my personal assistant Melanie, walked softly into my office and closed the door. Her face was flushed and eyes red as if she'd been crying, and I assumed by her appearance that she heard about Dennis and Aubrey. I was wrong.

"Luc, you know I love you and would never want to hurt you, right?"

"Mel, you're scaring me. What's up?"

"I fretted all weekend about this, but you need to know. My husband and I had dinner and went dancing to celebrate our anniversary on Saturday. We went to the jazz club downtown, and..."

She started crying. My mind raced trying to guess what she was going to tell me. Then it hit me. Zoey was supposed to be in a partners meeting Saturday in Portland and she stayed the night.

"What, Mel?"

"Your wife was there with some guy, and they... well... I took some pics. Oh, God, I'm sorry, Luc."

The pics were pretty clear. Fondling under the table, grinding on the dance floor, and heavy kissing were clearly captured.

My tears flowed like the Snoqualmie Falls. First Dennis and Aubrey's horrible news tore at my emotions, and now Zoey was betraying me. Melanie smothered me with hugs and apologies. I managed to calm down and thank her for telling me, and I apologized for Zoey ruining their weekend.

Mel forwarded the pics to me, and I printed the more graphic ones for use that evening. I recognized the guy as one of the models Zoey managed.

I stopped at the pub on the way home to drink some courage for the confrontation. Kaylee was great at helping me calm down. A couple of my friends from football days were there as well. I didn't know it at the time, but two of them launched a plan to teach Zoey's lover a lesson. I later learned they had tracked him down and beat the hell outta the guy. I kinda wished they hadn't, and yet I felt lots of guilt about secretly feeling glad they had.

Waiting for Zoey to get home seemed to drag on for eternity. My stomach churned. My mind kept shifting gears between anger, hate, regret, thoughts of forgiveness, and pain. When she finally waltzed in, I was seated at the dining room table with my exhibits ready to present.

She entered the room all cheery and sweet. "Hi, babe!" She came over to give me a kiss and I pushed her away.

"Sit down. Now!"

She sat so quickly she almost missed the chair.

"Luc, why are you talking to me like that?"

"I don't know." One by one I placed the photos on the table. "Is there some other way I should talk to you?"

She glanced at the first and immediately turned white. Her tears fell freely and would have melted me a day earlier. Now they just pissed me off.

"So what part of faithful didn't you understand?"

"Luc, I..."

"WHAT! What are you gonna say? It's just sex? It means nothing? You only love me? What can you possibly say that is gonna get you unscrewed?"

"Please, don't hate me. Take a few days and cool off. I'll never..."

"Never what? Never do it again? How often have you done it with this guy? How about other guys? I can't believe you'd betray me like this, especially knowing how Haley cheated on me."

"You just don't understand a woman like me."

"Understand?" My rage was boiling. From the back of her neck I pulled her face within inches of mine and yelled at the top of my lungs. "I completely understand what you are. I'd call you a pig, but that's an insult to swine. You had me fooled, didn't you? I'm sure you and your boy loved talkin' about me while he was stealing you from me."

I roughly pushed her away because I was afraid of what I might do. I could see the fear in her eyes and it both pleased me and scared me. I couldn't look at her face anymore so I turned my back to her so I could gather the strength to speak more calmly.

"I guess I'll never understand a liar or a cheater. You really had me fooled. You've betrayed me and everything I thought we had. Damn! I didn't think I could be hurt this badly, but congratulations, you've managed to destroy me. I think I understand exactly what you are, and I definitely know I can never trust you again."

I paced for a few moments trying to calm my anger while she softly cried. "I want you outta this house tonight. My lawyer is drafting the divorce paperwork now. The prenup is in effect since you managed to screw yourself on that. You have a half hour to get out and we'll talk by text about you getting the rest of your stuff."

I started to storm off and she was deep in the throes of wailing. I didn't care.

"Luc, please! I love only you. Please, don't."

I paused with Zoey to my back as I looked down at the floor. "Love? Well I don't love you anymore. I look at you and all I see is ugliness and absolutely nothing I want. And don't you dare say you love me. Love doesn't do what you did to me. You only love yourself. Now get outta here before I return. And tell your boyfriend to run. Fast and far."

Back to the Bar

Linda was tentative when she offered an observation.

"Your reaction seemed stronger than I would have imagined. Even though we just met, I get the impression that you're a more kind and gentle type of guy."

"Luc is both kind and gentle," Kaylee added. "But betrayal can unleash the beast in us all."

"Yeah. I admit I was probably a bit outta my head. But, Linda, you've obviously been on the receiving end of a cheater so maybe you can understand. With Harper, I knew we were never right for each other. I thought with all my heart that Zoey was the one, and she ripped my heart out. I said those things to vent and probably to hurt her as much as I could without getting physical. But what I said was true. Maybe she'll learn from it... maybe not."

"How did it go after that? Did you ever get some closure or manage to part amicably?"

"I calmed down and we eventually talked. If she had just made a mistake, I think I would have tried to save our marriage. I mean, I'm not perfect so I would have hoped for forgiveness if the tables were turned. But this was an affair that had be going since before Zoey and I were married, and she couldn't even commit to ending it. So we parted, but not on the friendliest of terms. Surprisingly, Zoey was compliant and resigned herself to the divorce as presented to her. She moved her business to New York and I haven't seen or heard from her since."

"What happened to her lover? You said he was badly beaten. Did that come back on you?"

"He had lots of bruises and was hurting for a while, but he recovered. The thing that upset him the most was a scar over his eye that threatened his modeling career, but even that has cleared up. Strangely enough, Zoey was my alibi since the attack occurred 45 miles away at the same time I was confronting Zoey in our dining room. I admit my first reaction was a sense that justice had been served, but that faded quickly. Sure, he was a piece of scum, but I didn't want that to happen and I never instigated it."

"So, that's two. It seems you picked the same kind of women and you expected different results."

I smiled sadly. "You sound like my friends. They've all tried to tell me the same thing, but I guess I'm a slow learner since I went down a similar path after Zoey."

"You're kidding?"

"No. I wish I was. As sad as it was, I think you'll get a kick outta how I learned about Samantha's cheating."

Samantha

My divorce was finalized in October of 2016. I decided to fly down to Dallas to see Aubrey and Dennis to join them for Thanksgiving. As usual, air travel was heavy that week and I found myself sitting at SeaTac for several hours through delays. I was concentrating on my beer in the lounge when a lovely blonde woman plopped into the seat across from me while she was holding a tense conversation with someone on her phone.

"Look. I can't control what the hell the airlines do. I can't go to the gate and demand we take off because you demand that I arrive on time. It's delayed. I'll be there later than expected."

She had the cutest dimples that danced when she talked and I couldn't help but chuckle to myself. She disconnected the call without waiting for a response from the other end and harrumphed a few choice words under her breath. Then, looking at me she realized I couldn't help but hear her conversation and assumed I was laughing at her.

"Are you laughing at me, jerk?"

"Oh, gosh, no. I'm sorry it seemed that way. I didn't mean to hear you."

"Then what are you laughing at?"

I was caught, and decided honesty was best. "I hope it doesn't piss you off, but... well...I noticed you have those amazing, beautiful dimples that really dance on your face when you argue with someone."

Thankfully, she laughed and blushed while trying to hide her dimples. "Sorry. My mother can make me irritable when she gets like that. She thinks the world revolves around her schedule and it's my fault that I'm gonna arrive late."

"Mothers can be that way. Are you okay?"

"Oh, yeah. I love my mom. But it's frustrating enough dealing with air travel, and I didn't need her attitude right now."

"Uh, your phone is ringing."

"It's her. Trust me, I'm sparing her feelings by not answering. I'm not in a good mood and I can't be held responsible for what might come out of my mouth."

"Can I buy you a drink to help with your attitude adjustment?"

"A drink from a stranger?" She flashed a "little girl look" with a shy grin and her dimples on full display. "I'm not that kinda girl."

"Well, I'm Luc. And you are...?"

She chuckled, smiled, and with pretend exasperation blurted out, "I'm Samantha, or Sam to my friends."

"See? Now we're not strangers. What would you like to drink, Sam?"

We chatted for almost two hours before my flight finally boarded. I was captivated by her wit and charm. She didn't quite have the cover-girl beauty of Harper or Zoey, but she was still extremely attractive. Her smile was a little crooked, kinda like Drew Barrymore, and combined with those wonderful dimples I found her sexy as hell. She had the body of an athlete, which made me feel like a high school sports star that let himself go a bit too much. I decided I had to fix that.

I was almost sorry to hear the announcement from the airline. "Dang! Sam, they're starting to board my flight. I really enjoyed getting to know you. Are you based here in the Seattle area?"

"Yeah. I live in Redmond."

"I'm almost next door in Kirkland. Can I be so bold as to ask if you are in a relationship? Because I'd love to buy you dinner and get to know you."

My opinion of how cute she was boosted even higher when she wrinkled her nose. "Wow, you move fast. But you're kinda nice, so... okay. Give me your phone."

"Sure. Here."

"Okay. My info is in your contacts under 'Sam' and you are free to call me any time after I get back next Wednesday."

"Thanks. I must say that I never thought I'd be so happy after having to sit and wait for a flight."

She was captivatingly sexy when she giggled. "Me too. I might even be in a good enough mood to call my mother back."

We hugged and I felt like I was in heaven. She pulled back from our embrace and she looked into my eyes. "Do you really like my dimples, or was that just a line?"

"Trust me. I really, really like them."

"Luc?"

"Yeah."

"Please don't turn out to be some kinda weirdo. I don't want to have to knock you around."

I was glad she was laughing.

"Don't worry. I'm so normal that I'm more afraid of boring you than anything else."

The flight was great because I felt like I didn't even need the jet. I was in full lust mode with the hope of love on the horizon. The chemistry seemed more than right.

In Dallas, Dennis picked me up at the airport and I was surprised how good he looked. On the drive to their home he told me the good news that he was in remission. He is one of the really good guys on this earth, and I couldn't have been more happy or relieved to hear he was doing well.

Dennis and Aubrey had three children and their home felt like the place I've always wanted for myself. Love was everywhere. Aubrey cooked a fantastic feast and took the time to scold me about picking self-absorbed women to marry instead of finding a girl with good character. In the back of my mind, I wondered what category Sam would fit into should we end up in a relationship.

I waited to call Sam until Thursday of the week we were both back home. I expected a quick conversation to plan a date, but it ended up making me feel like a teenager when our call turned into a two-and-a-half hour marathon. My head was floating in the clouds by the time our call ended. I could feel the huge smile on my face and I savored the moment. I knew then that I wanted her.

I couldn't wait to go pick her up for our date. I was so anxious that I had to fight the urge to leave way too early. Her apartment was only three miles from my house, and I expected to spend a lot of time in the coming months driving the route between our homes.

Our first date was at one of my favorite places, Matt's Rotisserie and Oyster House. We talked with ease and I couldn't stop gazing into her eyes. I was falling much faster than I wanted to, but I was clearly falling. The longer we talked, the more beautiful she seemed. Our conversation turned to light kissing during dessert. We barely made it out the door when she pulled me into one sexy, deliciously wet, tonsil-hockey kiss.

"Luc, you have no idea how much I want you to come to my place for a while."