Would You, Have You?

Before I get into the reason for my story, I want to cover some background information that will help you understand what I heard that turned my world upside down.

My name is Tommy Mayes. My friends still call me Tommy, but my business name is Tom. I work with my uncle in his restaurant that he has owned for over 40 years. I started working in the restaurant at a pretty young age mostly busing tables and helping in the kitchen. As I got older, my involvement only increased until I could do just about anything but cook.

My parents were killed in a car crash due to a drunk driver. The driver crossed the median and hit my parents head on. I was only 15 at the time. Uncle Sal took me into his home and we have worked together ever since. Uncle Sal and Aunt Ginnie never had kids, so I have been more of a son to them than a nephew. I am working my way to taking over the restaurant when Uncle Sal decides he has had enough of the business. Uncle Sal is barely in the restaurant anymore and trusts me completely.

I was 23 when I first met my wife, Kari. Kari came into the restaurant just after lunch with one of her friends. They sat at the bar and ordered a glass of white wine. I was the only bartender at the time until later in the afternoon when we would see an increase in traffic and would need a full time bartender. Kari struck me right off. She was my exact type. I love brunettes with long legs and beautiful eyes. Kari hit all of those marks. Her smile set off her eyes perfectly. At the time, I guessed that Kari was around 5'9" and roughly 125 pounds. Great chest and a perfect ass. What did you expect from a 23 year old. We can be pretty shallow at that age.

Getting back to the story. As I continued to get the bar ready for the evening crowd, I would check on the two ladies to see if they needed anything further. We made some small talk and I resolved to leave them to their conversation. As I was cutting some fruit, I was just far enough away for them to be comfortable with their conversation, but close enough that I could still hear anything above a whisper. I could see out of the corner of my eye that the two of them were staring at me and I heard an interesting question. "Would you, have you?" I didn't know what that meant, but Kari answered "Yes, and soon." There was some giggling and then they asked for a second glass and the check. I filled their glasses and handed them the check. Soon they were both walking out the door with Kari taking a quick look back at me with a wave.

I grabbed their glasses and the pay slip and headed to the register. I glanced down at the pay slip and it had Kari's name and phone number with a note to give her a call sometime. I was intrigued enough to write down the number and placed the paper into my pocket. I had forgot about the note until I arrived home and was emptying my pockets. I looked at the note and thought, what the hell. Give her a call. Worst thing that could happen was she could say no.

I gave Kari a call and asked her to dinner. Working in the restaurant, my days off were Mondays and Tuesdays. The weekends are too busy for me to not be at there, so I made the date for Monday night. Kari arrived and was dressed to the nines. Short enough of a skirt to show off her legs, but just long enough to not be slutty. White blouse with enough buttons undone to be intriguing and nice set of heels that accentuated her calf muscles. I couldn't help but think what an angel. Dinner went great and we started dating from there. We became exclusive 3 months later and then I asked her to marry me just short of a year. We have been married for the past 6 years.

After we were married, I asked Kari about the "Would you, have you" question. Kari said it was a sorority game the sisters would play when they would watch guys walk by their sorority house on campus. It was a way to bond around guys and to identify the good looking ones that they would like to explore going further with. Most times it didn't go any further, but occasionally it would turn into a date.

My responsibilities at the restaurant have only increased over the next 6 years. Uncle Sal had a strong belief in the best quality of products. He would source items from all over the country and would visit their operations once a year. Uncle Sal felt that this set his restaurant apart and allowed him to understand if the vendors sites weren't up to the grade, the quality of their products weren't going to cut it either. I had started to take over those trips over the past year and about once a month I would travel out of town for our vendors that were further away. This past month I had visited our vendor in Colorado that supplied our lamb. It was a great trip and I was impressed with their operations.

As I awoke on the fateful Monday that would change my marriage, I mentioned to Kari as she was getting ready for work that I would be at the restaurant this afternoon to oversee our produce delivery. I was going to be covering for our kitchen manager who had an appointment that he couldn't change. I did this occasionally, so it wasn't too big of a deal.

"Remember we are meeting the group tonight at Schmitty's for the Falcons game."

"Yep, I shouldn't be too long at the restaurant" was my reply to Kari as she walked out the door.

The Falcons were playing on Monday night and whenever that occurred we would meet a group of our friends at the bar to eat, drink and watch the game. Since I worked most weekends, this was the one opportunity for all of us to get together. It has become somewhat of a tradition for all of us. I left for the restaurant just after 2:00 PM to meet the truck.

As I sat waiting for the delivery, I received a call from our produce vendor that the truck would be delayed due to a flat tire. They mentioned that it was the inside tire, so it was going to take a little longer to change, but they should be there by 5:00. The game started at 7:00, so it would be tight to get the truck unloaded, the produce stored and home in time for kickoff. I sent a quick text to Kari to let her know that I would be home closer to kickoff than expected. I received an "Okay..." as my reply, which meant that Kari was pissed, but what could I do. The truck pulled up to the restaurant at 4:50.

We unloaded the truck in record time. I pitched in to help them and it moved pretty quickly. I took a quick inventory of what had been delivered and told them to head out to try to get to some of their other deliveries before it was too late. I put the produce into the cooler and hustled out the door. I arrived at the house at 6:25 and jumped into the shower. I noticed that Kari had already opened a bottle of wine which looked like it was almost empty. I guess I am driving tonight.

I came down the stairs at 6:40 and we were out the door. We walked into the bar at 6:55 and were there in time for kickoff. Kari immediately started talking to her two friends, Tera and Jessica. Tera was her friend that was at the bar when we met and Jessica was one of her sorority sisters from college. They all have known each other for a very long time. I shook hands with Kevin and Todd who had a beer waiting for me as I sat down. The girls had a glass of wine waiting for Kari as well. Kari was already feeling her oats and tends to get loud the drunker she gets. This could be an early night if she keeps up the pace she started out on.

We were into the 2nd quarter when I was shocked down to my foundation. A young waiter walked by when I heard the same phrase I heard the day I met Kari. Tera asked the same question as the three of them watched the waiter walk by, "Would you, Have you?" Jess was first to answer, "Yes" and "No", Tera answered the same. Kari's response was what changed my world, "Yes I would and Yes I have!" I was floored. What had I just heard? My wife just admitted to fucking some guy?

Kevin looked at me and asked "Tommy, are you okay? You look like shit."

"Thanks Kevin, but something just hit me. I think I might take off. Can you make sure Kari gets home okay?"

"No problem. We'll give her a ride after the game. Hope you feel better."

I walked over to Kari to let her know I was leaving. "Kari, I don't feel well. I'm going to head home so no one gets whatever hit me. Kevin and Tera will give you a ride home."

"Okay baby. I hope you feel better. I'll check on you when I get home."

As I was walking towards the door, I ran into the GM of the bar. Restaurant owners / workers tend to run in the same circles and I have known Bill for a few years. "Bill, who is the new waiter?"

"He is friends of the family that owns this place. He started about 3 weeks ago. He moved here from Texas and is pretty arrogant. I wouldn't have hired him if it wasn't for the owner. I give it a month and he will be out of here. He keeps hitting on all of the married women that come in here."

"Thanks Bill. I'll see you around."

As I drove home, the 3 weeks since moving here provided me a timeframe as to when Kari fucked the guy. I was out of town a couple of weeks ago in Colorado, so I will start to dig there. I pulled into the garage and headed to the basement. We had installed new security cameras in the restaurant so I took the old ones and had them installed around the outside of the house. Not sure Kari knew this, so I thought I would check the feed to see what I could find, starting around the time I was out of town. I found the dates in the archives and quickly scanned through the days. I noticed an unfamiliar car pull into our driveway late on a Saturday night. Sure enough, out stepped Kari and this waiter as they headed to the front door. It was 4 hours later that the guy left. I now confirmed my wife was cheating on me.

Now what? Was this the first time or how many other guys are out there that Kari cheated on me with? Does it matter? These were just some of the questions running through my mind. I did a quick search on the internet to gather some intel as to what others have done in these situations. There was a helpful guy who created a checklist of the things to consider. I started to go through the list to see which applied in my case.

First, protect your assets. Separate your money and close credit card accounts. Determine what you can do with your investment accounts to eliminate exposure. I will take care of that in the morning. Next, I need to contact a lawyer to explore what my options are there. No kids, the house was mine from my parents when they died, I didn't own anything related to the restaurant, so this could be pretty easy. There were some odds and ends to separate, but it should be pretty straightforward.

Next I will need to talk to Uncle Sal just to keep him in the know. He knows lots of people, so he might have a lawyer I could use. I decided to give him a call tonight.

"Hello"

"Uncle Sal, I don't know how to explain this, but Kari has been cheating on me. I overheard some comments tonight that she made and verified it with the security cameras I installed. I will need a couple of days to get some things in order."

"I'm sorry Tommy. That is the last thing I wanted to hear from you. Take your time. I can cover the restaurant so don't feel you need to hurry back. Take some time for you. Also, I know a couple of lawyers if you need some help there."

"Thanks Uncle Sal. I would appreciate the help. Sorry to burden you with my issues. I'm supposed to make your life easier, not harder."

"Never worry about that. That's what family is for. I'll send you the contact name in the morning. In the meantime, don't do anything stupid."

"Thanks, I'll be careful."

I looked at the clock and noted the game should be getting over soon. Fuck it, I don't want to see the bitch tonight, but I need to get my things in order before I unleash on her. I decided to sleep in the spare bedroom and could chalk it up to being sick. I headed to the room and thought I would try to get some sleep. A couple hours later I heard Kari stumble into the house. She opened the door to the guest room to look in on me. I pretended to be asleep. She closed the door and I heard her in our bedroom. She would be feeling good in the morning as she went to work.

I decided to stay in bed until after she left for work. I noted that Kari woke up late and was trying to get out of the house in time so she wasn't late for work. I smiled to myself hoping she feels like shit. Either way, it didn't matter to me anymore. I needed to tell myself that to keep from crying. I really loved Kari, but I knew I couldn't trust her anymore.

Uncle Sal had sent me the lawyers name, so I made an appointment with her this afternoon. I took a shower and headed to the bank. I pulled half of our savings out of our joint account and opened a separate account in my name only. There wasn't too much in the checking account, so I just left that alone. We only have the one credit card and it was through our bank. I paid off the balance with the remainder in the joint savings account and closed the account. I applied for a credit card in my name and left the bank.

I headed to the lawyers office and waited for my appointment. Julie Sanders ushered me into her office and we started discussing what I wanted to do. I told her that trust is a must in my relationships; in business and marriage. I can't live wondering what my wife might be doing while I am working or out of town. I don't have it in me to live any other way. Julie seemed like she understood and asked what I wanted out of the divorce. A mutual split was the easiest in my mind, so we decided to start there. I told her that I took half of the money we had in the bank and put it into my own account. The house was mine prior to the marriage and we didn't really own much of anything else. Kari has her retirement account and I thought about taking half of that, but decided to just leave it to make it easier. Julie agreed and said the documents would be ready by Wednesday. I asked to have her served at work on Wednesday afternoon.

I made an appointment with a locksmith to come by the house on Wednesday after Kari left for work. I purchased some boxes so I could pack up her stuff and have it ready so she could come by and pick it up. I have no intention of having her in the house after Wednesday if I could help it.

I still hadn't decided what to do for tonight. I didn't want to spend time with Kari and I really didn't want to sleep with her either. I could play sick again, but maybe I should go with the route of honesty. I called to have a pizza delivered and decided to have a heart to heart with Kari. No need for surprises as she had done to me with the whole cheating thing. That felt like the right thing to do.

Kari arrived shortly after the pizza was delivered and we sat down to eat. Kari must have had enough wine last night and went with water. I did the same. The dinner conversation was at a minimum except when Kari wanted to talk. I mostly sat eating my pizza and shaking my head depending upon the conversation. After dinner I asked Kari to join me in the living room. I think she sensed something was off since I was so quiet.

"Kari, I overheard something last night that I need to ask you about. You mentioned to Tera and Jess that you had sex with the waiter. Is that true?"

Kari's eyes were almost double in size due to her surprise. "Babe, that isn't true. I never said that."

"Yes, Kari you did. Tera asked you the same question she asked the night we met. Would you, have you and you said yes to both of those questions. That is when I left. I wasn't sick, but I was sick to my stomach thinking about you having sex with that guy. Please be honest with me."

"Okay, I did have sex with him a couple of weeks ago. It was a mistake." Kari had started to cry and waited a moment to catch her breathe. "I had went to the bar to meet some of my co-workers and noticed the waiter. He kept stopping by our table and I found him interesting. After my co-workers had left, I stayed to continue talking to him. I kept drinking and soon I was too drunk to drive. He offered to drive me home and I invited him in for a cup of coffee. We ended up having sex. That is the truth of it. That is the only time that has ever occurred. You have to believe me."

"Kari, thanks for being honest and I do believe you about what happened that night. It doesn't change the fact that you cheated on me and I question if it has happened more than just this one time. You seem too cavalier about this whole thing. "

I knew I had struck a nerve with her. I saw the subtle reaction in her body. Tears started to roll down her face as she stood and started to walk away. "Kari, one more thing before you go. I have filed for divorce. The papers were to be served to you at work tomorrow, but if you would prefer I can have them dropped here instead. I'm not trying to embarrass you. Stop by after work and they will be here for you. Also, I am boxing up your stuff and will have them stored in the garage until you find a place of your own. Just let me know when you are ready to stop by to retrieve them."

Kari just shook her head in acknowledgement. I couldn't see her face, but I could tell she was really crying now. She walked upstairs to the bedroom and closed the door. I went outside on the deck to catch my breath. I was able to keep my composure, but it was starting to crack. As I sat there, tears started to fall as the reality of the situation started to take hold. My marriage was over.

Kari left the house early the next morning. I had slept in the guest room and heard her leave. I left a message for my lawyer to have the paperwork sent to my house instead of serving Kari at work. I started to box up Kari's belongings. I was able to make a good dent when the courier from the lawyer's office stopped by around noon with the paperwork. The locksmith stopped by and made all of the changes to each door. The rest was sort of a blur until Kari arrived later in the afternoon. Jess was with her, so I assumed that she was going to stay there. I handed the paperwork to Kari and she went to the car. Jess stayed for a minute longer. "Kari called and told me what happened. I thought you might have heard us the other night and told Kari she needed to go after you. She didn't agree with me, but I guess I was right. I told Kari she could stay with us for a while, so if you need to reach her you can contact her there. I'm so sorry Tommy."

I shook my head and went back into the house. Jess put a few things into her car and they left. The house seemed much quieter; much more lonely now. This would be my new norm.

I called Uncle Sal and told him that I would be ready to start working on Friday. No need to wallow around here in my misery. I also decided to get into better shape. I wasn't too bad physically, but there was a lot of room for improvement. I went out and bought some free weights and a couple of benches. I setup a small gym in the basement. I also resolved to start jogging again.

A couple of months after filing for divorce, I still hadn't heard much from Kari. Her and Jess did stop by a few times to get some more of her stuff from the garage and told me she had found an apartment close to her work. Not much in the way of small talk, just some generalities. I did miss her, but the pain was still there too. I was happy when the last of her stuff was gone.

As I started to get into better shape, I needed to make an adjustment to my jogging routine. The restaurant was just over 7 miles away, so I decided to start to jog to work a couple days a week. There was a shower in the main office so on days that I drove to work, I left a change of clothes. I would then change back into my workout clothes at the end of the day and jog home. It was a great way to get in some exercise. Along with the weight lifting, I was starting to notice some real changes in my body. At some point that might pay off when I started to date again. I wasn't ready yet, but being alone sucked.