DIANE
For the first time in a long time, David and I made love that night. It certainly was not the way I had expected the night to end, but one too many glasses of wine combined with David’s gentle yet persistent persuasion as the night progressed, along with a small voice at the back of my mind reminding me that this was what I ultimately wanted – my husband back – had led to a night of steamy passion.
David had been slow, gentle, almost tentative on his lovemaking, as though he understood just how badly he had hurt me, and so was not sure just how far he was allowed to go.
I suppose he was right to be unsure, for I could have stopped him – but it had been so long since I had been with any man at all, and my body was more than ready for release. And so, rather than stopping him, I subconsciously forgave him and let him in.
We made love for most of the night, and by the following morning, I was still enveloped in the haze of its afterglow, along with the hint of a slight hangover.
In that moment, I was grateful that being self-employed I had the luxury of sleeping in, for my body certainly needed the recovery time.
David, on the other hand, was up bright and early, seemingly reinvigorated by the night’s activities, for he had a fresh spring in his step and a twinkle in his eye.
He graciously let me lie in while he handled the children’s morning routine, and while it usually took me almost an hour to get them all ready for school, he was done in almost half that time, and thirty minutes later, he was back in the room to plant a kiss on my forehead, let me know they were off, and that he would be back by dinner time.
After they all left, I lay in bed reminiscing on how beautifully the night had gone, and how perfectly the morning had started.
This was what I really wanted all along, and now that I had it, could I dare to hope it would last?
After all, David had taken that whore and their bastard to his parents’ home, and that wasn’t a thing he would do lightly…
DAVID
I was surprised when Diane let me make love to her that night. Considering how furious she had been just that morning and the explosive scene she had caused at my parents’ house,
I had not expected it to be quite so easy to forgive me, let alone allow me to touch her with any degree of intimacy.
Equally surprising was how making love to her felt both new and familiar at the same time. Physically, her body had not changed much; she had always taken care to keep it in shape, even after three children; so, perhaps what had changed was my perception of it.
While she no longer had the tight firmness of Julie’s more youthful body, her softer, more rounded curves, felt more comfortable and inviting.
I woke up before her the next morning and for a few minutes, I just watched her sleep. Her face softened when she slept; all the stress melted away and although she was already a very beautiful woman, in sleep she was even more beautiful; strange I had never noticed it before.
As I watched her, my mind went back to when we had first met at university; self-assured, confident, poised, graceful,
witty, clever, cultured, ambitious, classy, and beautiful were all words that perfectly described her; traits I was looking for in a wife.
Like my father had said, this was the woman I had chosen to marry and start a home and family with, and watching her sleeping next to me, I was struck by how close I had come to losing all that, and gratitude that I had not.
My feelings for Julie were genuine, I had no doubt about that, but at the same time, I had that morning come to the admittance that genuine or not, they were wrong.
However, of course there was not just Julie to consider, but Junior as well; my affair with Julie might have been a mistake, but out of it had come my own flesh and blood and there was no way I could walk away from him.
It was going to be difficult, but I knew I was going to have to find a way to hold onto one, without letting go of the other.
JULIE
I tossed and turned the entire night, plagued by thoughts of David and why he had not returned. When it was not my thoughts keeping me awake, it was Junior, who had picked tonight of all nights to wake up every hour, and by 5 am, I had given up on any sleep.
With a heavy head and eyes gritty from lack of sleep, I dragged myself out of bed and went to put on a pot of coffee.
It had just started to boil when Junior woke up yet again and I groaned in frustration; I was so tired I could cry and it took me a few seconds just to gather the energy to go and pick him up.
However, when I did, my frustration and exhaustion were quickly replaced by concern; Junior seemed a little warm to the touch, there was a thin sheen of sweat on his brow, and his cry was weak and lethargic.
My first instinct was to call David, but I knew the rules – I was not to call him while he was at the house; I had already somehow managed to drive him off the previous night, and even though Junior being sick would probably be an exception to those rules, I did not want to risk pissing him off further.
I had the numbers of two cab drivers, but one of the phones was off, the other did not answer and finally, in desperation, I called a number I had not called in a very long time – Doctor Kenneth’s. Thankfully, he answered almost immediately.
“Hi Julie; is everything alright?” he asked, his tone surprised and concerned.
“No, it’s not! I’m sorry for calling at this time, but Junior is sick; he’s got a fever, is weak and sweaty, and won’t stop crying. I tried calling some cabs I have saved, but I can’t get through to any of them and I’m sorry, I didn’t know what else to do.”
“No need to apologise; I actually worked the night shift, so I was just wrapping up; I’ll come pick you up and we’ll bring him in and have a look at him,” he said easily, like it was no big deal, and he was not saving me from what I considered a major crisis.
“Are you sure it’s not too much trouble? I hate to impose….”
“You’re not imposing on me, and it’s no trouble at all,” he interrupted me. “Get ready, I should be there in about fifteen minutes.”
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