All Comments on 'Listening When I Shouldn't'

This seemed real. It was emotional and well written.

I could see this happening, couples do loose their way. The pain and they love came through in the story, Thanks.

dream on

But there is a saying that love conquers all. I am not sure that would be enough in this marriage.

If Rob would have been up to the task, and got her off with a good orgasm, then her husband would have been history. She would have had his ass out of her life in a New York Minute. She is a selfish slag, after all she is the one that told him that wine, food and candles aren't going to cut it anymore, and to find his sex elsewhere. I would think that would have been as bad as having his heart torn form his body. The cold hearted conniving bitch may not have been fucking her lover, but was having an inappropriate relationship with him. Bringing her lover home, under her husband's roof to fuck her lover like a street whore, was the ultimate disrespect she could have shown her husband. The blame should rest squarely on her shoulders for the problems they had, and her husband was too forgiving and should have had some sort of payback from her, or just thrown her slut ass out.

This is unusual for a loving Wives story--tells a moving and compelling story. Marriages are complicated; sometimes things go badly wrong, and it may or may not be possible to pull them back together again. (And luck is involved too--as one commenter said, if her lover had been terrific in bed instead of a disappointment, perhaps the marriage might have ended.) Very nicely done--thanks. ohio

Bit different to the norm, and actually quite believable. Thanks

what a surprise. NOT!! LOL...

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This story is just awful. Even IF you can accept the idea of normal guy IMMEDITELY fucking his mean nasty bitter wife right after she fucked someone else... when its time for thier talk as they reconnect... the husband apologizies for his seeing escorts but he never says "Bitch you hated my guts and told me there would be ore sex between us"

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a stupid story

of the nerve of some readers to tell the author to quit writing. If you don't like his stories don't fucking read them. Simple solution. No, instead you spout your vial comments. Do you feel better now? Good, get off this site, you don't belong here.

There are a lot of things wrong with this story. Note to the STUPID people not a single comment below will be a <u>Throw the bitch </u> comment.

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TRUE STORY: a few years ago my best friend started seeing escorts. His wife had cut him off sexually &d emtionally. I told him to stop and confront the issue head on. Some time later his wife called me and asked if my friend... her husband... was seeing someone. I asked her why? He had stop "bothering" her -- her words-- about sex. I asked my friends wife "Sue when was the last time you guys did IT..." she said "July 4th. I remember because it was the holiday". I said "Sue its sept 3rd!!!".

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It turned out that for the whole year they had sex 3 or 4 times thru Sept 3rd. Her concern was NOT about their sex life or how her rejection was hurting my friend but If he was seeing someone else.

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<b>In THIS story once again we see a classic case of Man bashing by an author who is so desperate to come up with a new "angle" on a LW story that the author develops a series of Key issues in an Impossible situation then NEVER explains or resolves them.</b>

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FIRST what the fuck is wrong with the author OHIO? No matter how wretched or inconsistent a story is all he does is give out 100s.

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SECOND the wife's transformation is way too sudden and NOT explained at all ...even at the end of the story. <b>The wife shifts from... "You will never have sex with me again" to "I missed your cock" ... WAAAAY too quickly. </b>

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SOMETHING must of gone on with the wife's mental and emotional state so that when she see a sincere effort by her husband of 20+ years for a romantic dinner... her response to her hsuband is essentially: fuck off and die.

<b>That sort of EXTREME response is never talked about at all. </b>

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THIRD... the husband suddenly becomes a character from a Just Plain Bob story??? The author (not me) has the <b>husband go on and on and on about how he cant handle the idea of his wife fucking someone else. Then 10 seconds after the other guy leaves the husband is now " hey baby let me have sloppy seconds !?!?" </b>

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FOURTH... the husband apologizes about seeing two escorts but the wife ever says sorry about cutitng him off sexually?

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we all know men are NOT as well develop emotionally as women are. His approach then her rejection of him was and is serious. The wife is NOT obligated to have sex with her husband but she does NOT have to be so viscous and cruel. If the wife wants out she should say so.

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NOT good.

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A fine,engaging,story-and a happy ending. Thank you-B.

I enjoyed the gray murkiness of it. A breakdown in communication, two people stubborn and unwilling to bend, and all of a sudden they both are doing things they really don't want to do.

Sometimes it takes a mistake to right yourself back on the path.

There are many things. His parents were siblings. Both had sex changes before he was born, and it was a very difficult birth. He doesn't understand if the reader doesn't approve of the actions of a character in a story, the story is absolutely no damn good. He thinks a writer gives the characters life, and directs their actions in the story. He appreciates the efforts made by writers to entertain readers. He understands that it isn't easy to post something and have insults hurled at him for writing the story. He tries to be positive and comment only on stories he likes. He has yet to learn that when his opinion differs from some other readers.... he is wrong, and he truly is a dumb fuck!

We need a few different approaches in LW and as far as I have read what's available, this has a uniqueness. I appreciate Bazzza's time, energy and talent that he puts into entertaining us.

if every score that one hands out is ALWAYS a 100 the value & impact of giving out A 100 kind of gets lost or dilluted... no?

To Harry: I give out 100s to stories I like and enjoy, or at least respect and find interesting. It's true that I tend not to give lower scores--if I dislike a story or find it boring, I don't vote at all. As an author myself, I respect all those who work to entertain the rest of us, and I feel no need to vote a low score or comment negatively on anyone's work. That's just my personal choice; others can do as they please.

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To HDK: How on earth did you find out about my family background? It's actually more complicated than you indicated: my parents were siblings as a result of sperm and then egg donation by an anonymous, transgendered donor (first a man, later a woman). And they raised me (along with my brother and sisters) in a cave in a large zoo in a depressed midwestern city. That explains my lifelong preference for raw meat, as well as for cotton candy (which visitors to the zoo used to throw down to us).

Gray, Blue, White, Black, whatever. situations happen. people do get stupid and deserve some beatings. that's life. either learn or sink in a quagmire.

Marriages and people are complicated. The author did well telling the story of two complicated people. Whether I agree with their actions is irrelevant. If the writer does a good job describing people unlike myself, so be it and good for him/her. BTW - HIV analyzes stories as though people are uncomplicated robots. "She did this, so he should do this... He did this so she should do this... This happened so therefore the marriage is over...." I am pleased people are more complicated, loving and foregiving than HIV would have us believe.

Relationships change because we change and this story illustrated that wonderfully. Yes, they took each other for granted, but they discovered taht the grass isn't greener on the other side.

I'm giving 100 for all the<b><b/>Saucy, Entertaining, Funny and Interesting<b><b/> comments. <p>Enjoyed everything here. Thank you <b><b/> ALL<b/> for the entertainment =))

Some retribution is needed here...Maybe a baseball bat to the knees or a 5 iron to the groin...He knew she was a married woman and should have to pay with PAIN for his actions!

your view of how I see things is unfair. Maybe its me... this story strikes a DEEP nerve because I have seen this sort of Behavior from WIFE/ women a LOT.

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an awful lot. and it is MOSTLY the wife's fault.

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IF you really think Both sides are at fault... If it is true that I am viewing things too Black and white... then can you please explain to me why no one else has focused the impact of cutting off the husband emotionlly and sexually?

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WHY is that sort of behavior acceptable?

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In this case it seems to me the wife decided to try someone else because she wanted revenge on her husband has sex with two escorts. In this story there was NO focus on at all about how mean twisted and nasty the wife had become.

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if a wife falls out of love... which of course happens... does that behavior justify ANY action the wife does?

Rare for me to give a hundred. Rare for me to reward a cheater in any way, but it was a treat to see the way this worked out. Maybe a fairy tale, but much better than two good people throwing away 25 years of a living and working relationship.

i like the story, but for her to take another man into their home when she knew her husband was there is totally disrespectful and wouldn't happen with anybody i know.

i like the story, but for her to take another man into their home when she knew her husband was there is totally disrespectful and wouldn't happen with anybody i know.

and whore wives. There was neither here

Harry, this isn't my story, it's Bazzza's. I know you might be rebutting what I said about you earlier, but it is just a story after all. Whether things like this happen in real life or not, doesn't really come into play. Bazzza's just using his imagination and writing talents to take things to a different level, one I feel entertains the readers more than a realistic one. As for me, I have taken your comments to heart on my story 'The Usual' and have re-written it and it is now ready for posting. I'd like your opinion on the new version and post that on Feedback. LanceGT

I saw your comment to Lance and assumed it was directed back at me. It seems we both feel the same about your comments and how you rate them. I read through all of them to get an understanding of how this tirade formed and shades of my story re-appeared. As writers, we try our best, as Bazzza has done, to entertain the readers with a story. Whether it smacks of reality or comes across as absurdly outrageous, is the writers choice to present it. If the reader can't fathom that this is just a work of fiction and takes it to heart, then who is to blame for the reaction. It seems readers who post negative feedback about the content, rather than the intent, must have felt it hit close to home in their own lives. Maybe they are looking for answers to their own problemed lives and didn't find it in the story. Lance

Excellent story. I don't know why another "writer" the "lancegt" is advertizing his "story" Well, no one is interested to know about your "story" To the author good job.

Enjoyable story; happy ending. Love wins. Congratulatiions

She TOLD him to get his sex elsewhere after refusing him, he did nothing wrong. She brought another man into their house......their house. He is a weak ass pussy. She should have left. I should be inserted into the story, go to their house and brutally murder them both.

This is the way that two mature adults, who have a deep love for each other which does get submerged at times by other issues in life, come back together in the closest intimacy that we humans enjoy. "Write or Right On", Bazzza! You hit the target on this one.

until almost too late. They both made mistakes, and common ones. Forgetting to be lovers along the way and letting kids and jobs get in the way of being partners and lovers were their sins. Well written. Nicely done. Thanks.

Fascinating comments, but I have to admit that the author is a powerful writer. For this reason I gave the story a 5 where it counts.... But I can't really bring myself that I loved the story.. It was too painful and too real...

I feel bad about what happened in the story and really do not see what a husband could have done in this case. Obviously escorts was not the answer, but being nice also failed. Maybe this was the only, potentially disastrous way back.

25

Well done. I enjoyed this tale, it had the bite of realism that raised it above the mundane. Tip of the hat to the author.

First, Bazzza, you should be pleased to see how many readers took the time to express their feelings about your story. Feelings both good and bad, or perhaps positive and negative. That indicates you aroused them. Many writers cannot. <p> Second, some well known and accomplished writers have just favorably commented on this story. You can't received better rewards than that. <p> Finally, I always look forward to your stories because they are so well written, entertaining, and just the right length. It takes considerable skill to develop characters in just a few words. You show it to be both an art and a science. <p> Keeps them coming!

Bazzza: Your story held my interest throughout, which is an experience I have less and less around here. This couple became complacent and let their relationship become stagnant. Flavor this discord with pride and stubbornness, and these folks are in real trouble.</p>The wife was definitely hitting below the belt with her comment that a candlelit dinner was not going to literally sweep her off her feet, but I really believe at that point much hurt had already been inflicted by each on the other. Her threat of no sex was no doubt one of a number of bitter remarks that they had already directed at each other. Much more than a romantic dinner would be required to heal this schism.<p>To find one of this couple more culpable for blame than the other is foolish. I have no doubt that hurtful exchanges were commonplace in their marriage. But it does give me pause that the husband is the one who self-admittedly <i>gave up</i> on the marriage and who crossed that uncrossable line first. Both husband and wife here share much guilt and shame.<p>Bazzza, the actions and words of your protagonists exuded authenticity. I've met and known some couples who pretty much mirror the folks in your story. It's a tale which occurs much too often and less frequently has the credible reconciliation as did your story. With many thanks for a pleasant read Philip

She is the one that closed down the marriage and refused sex. She is the one that destroyed a dinner and told him to get sex elsewhere. She is the one that made a date with a coworker to fuck and told that coworker she had an ex. And suddenly he loves the slut and wants to make love to her. Get a grip! This is sci fi fantasy with no relationship to reality. It would never have gotten to the prostitutes with me. Her attitude would have been enough for the to ditch her along the way. Finances hell, without love and a life what the hell do finances mean? This idiot woman needed to have been ditched long before she planned to become an adulterer with her own life. Women about to lose their lifestyle will say or do anything to keep it including say it meant nothing, I love only you, and I will be faithful I have learned my lesson.

with your miserable misogynist rantings. Just accept that other people's relationships can be stronger than you like to her about - presumably because it makes you feel a right prat for having fucked up your own.

Good story. well written, loving and marriage take a lot of work. THX

<p>From the moment the husband wrote of his frustration, infidelities and confession, this became a truly sad story for me. I wasn't sure if his wife could hurt him any worse than he had hurt himself. Perhaps that is why his forgiveness came so easily; it was a way of absolving himself.</p>

<p>The happy ending came at a very high price for them both. Thanks for sharing this story with us.</p>

If Rob had been the greatest lover in the world, it wouldn't have made a difference. There was no emotional connection,ergo, no real enjoyment. Pride and stubbornness are powerful negatives in a relationship. Both are guilty here. For once, we see a couple here who come to their senses, albeit almost too late. They've made major mistakes, but they have raised their children and had a basically good marriage. Why shouldn't they get back together. They're flawed, but so what. Aren't we all. Good story. Paul

Eventually she will serve him some more juicy creampies. I did not like the story.

A very human story.

He made an effort and rebuked, and that was pivotal. Then there is her reaction to get what she does not give, and who is miffed? The financial reasons were a sham, given your end. It seems better to just part and leave with the memories, as they were. The issues were deeper than just empty nest, and he should have left her at the initial point,for both their sake.

So I did too - we cucks must stick together or our supply of creampies will become extinct

I'm not into cuckold stories, but this one is different enough to warrant two readings. The first was to get the essence of the story and the second was to determine the validity of the relationship.

People are screwed up. It doesn't matter how much money they make, how much power they have, and how well they are raised. We are all very screwed up individuals. This story is just a small, very small, slice of that life. There are no perfect marriages, nor perfect relationships, no perfect people. Because of that, it's a struggle of conscience, a debate with doubt, and the uncertainty of trust when we love someone and they do us wrong.

This well written story is a perfect example of just how screwed up we are and cuts to the heart of the matter.

When she gave up..then she gets perturbed over what her did? Would have been more interesting for them to go their separate ways .....regret and burned bridges.

Comments are too similar, or maybe husband/wife troll team, brother/sister?

When he prepared a special meal with all the trimmings and she turned him down and told him to go elsewhere - sadly done! That is when they should have talked.

Telling him to get it elsewhere and he finally did and told her - not vengefull, just remorse and besides - there wasn't ny love making.

Now, she goes on a date and then brings a guy home to make love - a whole different emotion with this, this is romance and love making - not a quick 50 for an emotionless fuck.

So, you wrote a decent ending and the story was well done but - in real life, when they drifted and got sex elsewhere - no respect for each other, their former life or their vows - all over!

Thanks

I'm not sure that the circumstances of this tale would have led them to the conclusion reached. Well written, however unrealistic.

There's my two cents.

HA

I enjoyed the story with the empty nesters looking for meaning back in their lives.

It should have been "Not Listening When I should Have." If he had done that he would not have found himself in this position.

Thanks

They get irritable with each other and then he realized that they need to work things out and she shines him on! His dinner is rebuffed by her as a complete nothing and she tells hum to get sex elsewhere. Instead of chasing women and a relationship, he buys sex twice and she gets up tight about it...huh, what did she think was going to happen.

Now she decides to date and have sex with a colleague who has been courting her and she wants to have a relationship (sex included) with him and she goes ahead with it!

Well, too bad it wasn't any good. She pushed hubby away, told him to get laid elsewhere and allowed a seducer to have relations with her and when it doesn't excite her she decides, better keep hubby dummy!

You're good Bazza but it doesn't wash. Mentally she killed her husband, he tried and she, without any consideration for him, went ahead and sexually dated. SAD, but this marriage would have been over.

I enjoy your writings and this one right up to where and when she went down on Rob and then...DONE!!!...To me...Wrong Ending and I don't think he had to burn her - Just Leave!

Thanks anyway!

Not badly written at all, in fact this is a decent story from a technical point of view. What I don't like is the content and your conclusion. It's one thing to go out and hire a hooker for an hour or a night and the husband should deservedly be fucked up the ass for that, metaphorically speaking. It's a whole other thing to bring the lover into the shared home, however. In my mind, these two different sexual acts create a real imbalance and if the husband wasn't a bit of a wimp, the relationship would never be able to be mended after that.

I am not the type of reader who screams "cuck, cuck, cuck", but this story, much like MATT M Separate Vacations which really should have been named The Bitch's Vacation just plain sucks. A narcissist wife who has no respect for her spouse. I've been married 35 years, 10 yrs 1st wife 25 yrs 2nd wife. Never did even my 1st wife show such a lack of respect. This guy should find his balls and Rename this "When I retained my manhood and hit the road." If she didn't mean her comment about him needing to find sex elsewhere she should dropped to her knees 1st light next day, deepthroated him, swallowed every drop and begged for forgiveness. For the unforgivable act of bringing back her fuck buddy to the house she should permanent marker BITCH on her forward. This story isn't romantic it emasculating.

HEY

He goes out and fucks Hookers while Married.

She brings someone home long AFTER they have decided to go their seperate ways & get divorced ...... at that point they are living as room mates ...

and somehow those events combine to make them both realise what bloody idiots they have been & allows them to repair their marriage.

He is a cheater , he ain't a cuck ..

She is not a cheater ...

get a brain , grow some balls ....

don't be a pussy " think " for a change .

xxxhugsxxx

SUCKER

When she told him to get laid elsewhere he should have pulled the plug. If he started the ball rolling towards divorce, MAYBE she'd have come around in time to save it all. What a waste of years. Good writing and reading but lousy story. Cheers!

Good story...4* for love triumph in the end...

For her to cut him off and treat him like shit and him to be so angry and desperate to go to a dirty hooker tells you a lot about how "close" they were and what a "good" marriage they had. I highly doubt they ever had a great marriage. What they had was the inertia of raising kids. When that was done, there was nothing left and apparently she didn't want to make the effort to renovate their marriage. So the shit treatment, the stupid reaction and more stupidity on both their parts. In the end, what changed? They were still the same people but they had covered themselves in mud like fools. No, there was no love, there was just loneliness, desperation, humiliation and fear. What a life!

Thanks

Speaking of plots dear annony you should be in one. Gave it a5!!

It's nice to read about two grownups growing up. I enjoyed your story, Bazzza. Cheers!

I don't know how I missed this one, and the comments were great. I found out all about Ohio, like wow!

Two things of interest to me: one was the primitive technology that attended the story, and second the score is abysmally low for something this good. I rated it a five, and feel it was Hall of Fame caliber.

The drifting apart and the mistakes made by both husband and wife were very believable, although the use of their home for the 'experiment' was a bit OTT, but then it is a story after all. Then the use of low tech baby monitors rather than complicated gismo's was realistic. It was a good story, but then I'm a sucker for a happy ending !

complacency and neglect can be fatal to a marriage.

As the comments attest, the ending is not for everyone, but hopefully it is best for the principals in this drama.

Thanks for stirring up doubts, inspiring regrets, introspection and reflection.

is there a term for a listening?

I think its a version of reality. It could happen that way. shouldn't be at all that quick to judge, human are always complicated.

I seldom agree with HarryinVA.

But, he analyzed this perfectly.

Good job, Harry

It's easy to see why. It's all about you, isn't it. Until that changes, you'll never really know what being in love is or means.

She humiliated her husband. He needed to pack his bags and leave the cheating bitch. No shame in doing that..let her fend for herself.

I realize it's just fiction but this story pissed me off. She told him straight out to get his sex elsewhere so he did. So she went out and dragged some poor idiot back to her house to screw while her husband was there. Just for spite, it seemed. That's not just low-class and disrespectful but it's also dangerous. In my world hubby would have been applauded for kicking the shit out of lover-boy and ejecting "L. B" and (former) wife from his home.

Wife made it clear she was through with husband. If not for financial situation they would have divorced at her request.

One commenter castigates those who take issue with wife as being selfish and never having been in love.

That comment describes wife perfectly.

She could have postponed lover's visit until husband's car was fixed. The fact that she did not defines her intent and her character!

He is less than a man.

That comment in story's beginning makes little sense.

Yes the children were out of the house but she was not a stay at home mom

I shake my head when hear or read empty nest-even if she was stay at home mom.

In today's world so many options exist for such wives...volunteering, continuing education...

Finding something to do would be just a matter of looking

I find the characters and story are believable and enjoyable. The somewhat quirky behavior of the male lead strikes me a being within the bounds of realistic human behavior, making the story ring true. I'm glad that these characters have overcome their fears and flaws and found each other again, and have the courage to reach out once more. Much happiness for them going forward.

Five *****.

Rutty

Why is the wife's complete and utter lack of respect for her husband ever mentioned, not even by the husband himself? Yes, he got the ball rolling by fucking prostitutes, but he at least had the decency not to shit where he ate and kept it out of the homestead. But the wife can't even clear that low bar and just HAS to bring her boyfriend home. Even knowing her husband will be there, she never so much as entertains the idea of doing it somewhere else, and in fact complains about him inconveniencing her.

If it's a matter of her being comfortable with her surroundings, the fact that she'd be "comfortable" fucking another man in the family home says quite a bit about her character, and it's nothing good. A lot of so-called "open marriages" even have it as an explicit rule that neither spouse can bring a "playmate" into the shared home. Even if they don't value marital fidelity, they at least value and protect the sanctity of their home.

If I were in the husband's shoes, no matter how much I loved the bitch, her NEED to defile and taint our home forever would stick in my craw. If nothing else, it shows a not-insignificant amount of disdain lurking just beneath the surface. I don't think I'd be able to spend the rest of my life wondering when it would come out again, and what she'd do if it did. Not as bad as a wife with severe anger issues who might stab you in your sleep in a fit of rage, but not a whole lot better, either.

EHS or "Empty Head Syndrome." ... It is usually fatal, I'm afraid.

Save your time. Do not bother with this tripe.

Well done. Believable. Well developed. Thanks.

I had something similar happen to me. Our sex life had come to zero. When I tried talking to my late wife, she said the same. "If you need it so bad! find somebody to do it with." I never did it, but I gave her the impression that I had. She did her bit of crying and playing the offended one. She accused me of all kind of things. finally after about three weeks she announced that since I had stepped out on our marriage she was doing the same. She already had a date lined up, she told me. Things changed when she saw me packing my bags. She didn'r want me to leave. She wanted to talk. I asked her. "How long has this been going on?" She acted surprised that I would think that of her. I told her that I might not be the sharpest knife of the set but that I wasn'r stupid. and to stop treating me like an idiot. I told her that I knew what she was trying to do since the day she told me to find it somewhere else. she was just trying to make it to where she didn't have to hide from me. I left, and stayed away for about three years. I found several women that I would see on a regular basis just nothing serious. Eventually we got back together. she told me that she had been seeing the guy for sometime and he had suggested to her the stopping of sex and then telling me to go somewhere for it. then after I did it she could get her revenge on me with him. She broke it off with him that night I left. and she told me that even though things had been getting heavy with them she never did the actual act with him. Even onto her death bed she swore that she had not done the deed with him or anybody else while she had been married to me. Well I lost my love for her that night before I walked away. Just the Idea of what she wanted to do killed it. The only reason I went back with her was because of out four kids. If she had only told me up front that she wanted to try someone else instead of her trickery, I'm stupid enough that I might just have given her permission. and still love her till her dying days. Oh! she knew, she even asked me several times. Why I didn't love her anymore.

... with your spouse? For most of us, all the time. I loved this classic and the way this couple talk with each other. Real, honest, vulnerable, there in the moment. I could relate. Well done.

What a "F-in" fool!

Sad that so many think it's not a good story. I liked it a lot. Very close to my own experiences.

Divorce would have been better. She would be bored soon agsin.

REALLY!! You really are pathetic!

I feel sorry for you, as you obviously have never had the experience of being truly in love. Thanks for the story,

She Killed that Marriage .. If My Wife told Me that No More Sex from Her .. I would be looking for some strange also ..

On my way out I would take a knife to her clothes and slice all of them. Scary, but I think it would express the pain and betrayal. I would never keep her as a wife.

It's vile on several levels and horribly avoidable, but I can see it happening. The story telling was good. The emotions were real. What do they say about needing to hit bottom before you can begin the climb back up? Self-aware people avoid that, but others do not. While I can see this happening, I think the level of pain would be far greater and longer lasting than described here. They did an excellent job of killing everything.

I'm happy for you that you have never felt the sting of betrayal, or being told your partner isn't interested in you anymore, or that your spouse feels the need to have sex with another man. So anony, thank your lucky stars but dont judge others until you have been there.

Worst story on lw. Only a fool would stay, especially after that comment about the candlelight dinner. I would also meet the guy at the door with a gun. If she complained I just tell her to leave with him.

I like to read the comments on stories; sometimes they are more entertaining than the actual story. Not necessarily in this case but often. I thought this well written given the length. I will agree with some that the dinner episode where she blew him off as equating a nice romantic dinner meaning a trip to the bedroom would have been enough for me to file and move on the next day. That, however, doesn’t mean it is the only reaction and that is where I laugh at many of the comments...those people who think their reaction is the only rational one are the same self important “centers of the universe” that cause me to honk my car horn often in big city traffic. It is obvious that this couple were subconsciously searching for a way to stay together but didn’t have a clue how to do that or even that is truly what they needed to do. No recriminations from either of them, simply consciously doing what they felt like they needed to do but done with reservation that they couldn’t put a logical reasoning to. That is until they both understood the depth of their feelings for one another and put the past behind them and a recombined future ahead of them.

Too easy 1 star WIMP story.

Excellent. I especially liked the character development of your protagonist. Also, the description of the marriage and development of their problems was realistic. Unlike a few of your critics, I also think that the couple's mutual discovery of how and why things came to where they reached their crossroads was well-written as was the solution they found. (To the critics: all endings in real life do not turn out to be unhappy. Why do some of you insist on a one size fits all outcome to problems within marriages? Have any of you experienced real love and real forgiveness?) One criticism: did we ever learn the husband's name? I don't think I found it. Maybe I missed it.

Both are cheaters, and she even brought a guy to their home. That would be hard to forget. Maybe they make it. Maybe not.