One secret visit.
But a secret visit at night…
A lie to our son…
And a request not to wake me?
Those weren’t random details anymore.
They were pieces of the same story.
I just wasn’t ready to admit what story they were telling.
Those weren’t random details anymore.
Marcus cleared his throat loudly.
He tugged at the cuff of his shirt, then suddenly grinned like he had cracked a great mystery.
“You know what? I bet I know what he means. I did stop by once. Very briefly.”
Amber whipped her head toward him.
“Remember, Amber?” he continued. “I had paperwork that you needed to sign before an early meeting.”
“I bet I know what he means.”
Amber nodded. “That’s right. I completely forgot.”
I looked at my wife.
I wanted so desperately for that to be the answer.
“No.” Noah stomped his foot in frustration. “The man gave me caterpillars, and then Mommy told me to go away while she talked to the man. But I saw what they were doing.”
My pulse hammered in my ears.
Noah stomped his foot in frustration.
First the candy.
Then the nighttime visit.
And now… I wasn’t sure I wanted to know what Marcus and Amber had been doing.
Amber covered her mouth. “Noah…”
He frowned. “You were kissing by the fridge.”
Every answer was making the last lie collapse.
“Oh, my God!” Someone exclaimed.
A few people gasped.
Others turned their faces away.
I felt my stomach drop.
Before I could speak, Noah tugged gently on my sleeve.
“Daddy, the caterpillar man made Mommy sad. She cried in the kitchen when he left.”
“Oh, my God!”
I thought I understood.
They’d had an affair.
My marriage was over.
It was devastating… but heartbreak made sense.
But affairs didn’t usually end with someone crying alone in the kitchen.
There was something more going on here.
