Algebra

She was quiet for a minute. "It was funny what they did to him though, don't you think?"

I think she was trying to change the subject. "Yeah, that was probably closer to reality. I think the cheater got what he deserved."

Sunday morning up and ready for church, again just KJ and I, Melanie decided not to go again. We enjoyed our time together anyways. I have to admit I didn't listen to the sermon. My mind was elsewhere. KJ asked me after the service. "Are you alright dad? You didn't seem to be paying attention at all."

"I've got a lot on my mind KJ" I said, lying to my daughter. "There are some things going on at work that have me concerned. I may have to be traveling for work a bit in the next few weeks."

"Well, I hope it is nothing too serious. I know you love that job."

"Don't you worry about it KJ, you just have a great senior year and be sure to keep the grades up if you want to get into Cornell University."

When we got back from church dinner was ready, grilled salmon with all the trimmings. We ate and KJ and Melanie did most of the talking. I didn't say much, I just wasn't in the mood to talk.

"Are you okay Honey?" Melanie asked concerned about my silence.

"Yeah, just thinking about work and what I have to do." I said.

"Maybe you should put a resume' together." She suggested.

"Not much of a resume', one job." I said.

"But you do a lot there." She said.

"Yeah, I guess."

Afterwards I put my dishes in the dishwasher and decided I'd hit the leaves again. I love nature but this gets to be a pain. I think my next place I live will be a condo so someone else can be responsible for these leaves. I went upstairs and changed into my Cornell College sweats, perhaps this would get Melanie to think of the old days when we were young and happy. Maybe she would start to feel guilty for what she is doing to us. If she came to me now would I be able to forgive her and continue in this marriage? I just didn't know. One thought kept coming into my head, "Why is she freely giving herself to Jack but I have to beg and haven't had any sex since August."

I went out and raked leaves. It gave me time to think. If she came to me before Thanksgiving I would forgive her but things would need to change. I would need to know why. I would need our sex life to change drastically and she would have to understand that it would take her a lot of hard work to regain my trust.

After a few hours I had another 15 bags sitting at the curb. I went into the house and went up to my room to change. Melanie called to me, "I'm going to run to the store, do you want anything special?" "Just a faithful wife." I said softly to myself. "No, thanks though." I called back down to her.

When she left I went down into the basement to check the laptop. I heard Melanie' side of a phone call.

"Hello Jack. How is my lover today? ..... Just thinking of you. ..... Oh definitely that and more. ..... Yeah, they are at church. ..... No, they will be back any time now. No time for that. ..... I miss you too. ..... So how are you doing? ..... Are you really that worried? ..... No, Kurt doesn't seem worried. I can't help but be worried though, I don't know what we'd do if he lost his job. So what are you going to do? ..... That's a good idea. I think I'll encourage Kurt to create a resume'. All it will have on it is the one job though. That might not be enough. ..... Sure, I'll have him use you as a reference. ..... I think I hear the garage door going up. I'll have to talk to you later. Bye now."

So, Jack definitely was worried about his job yet he still has time to think about fucking my wife. Was my marriage over? Was there no turning back? Almost 20 years down the drain with nothing to show for it. No, that wasn't right. KJ was what we had to show for it. Just thinking about her made me feel it was worth it.

Monday morning found me in the office talking to some of the women who came in contact with the sales people that call on us. I asked, "Have you met the new salesperson from ABC Die yet?" They all said yes and they seemed to like him. A couple of them commented that they were glad we got a new one, the other one gave them the creeps. I told them that they should tell Brad about any inappropriate things said or done by Mr. Anderson and don't be afraid to speak up in the future.

I called the bank and found out that I needed to sign a few documents and within 3 weeks I would have my equity loan approved. I was surprised with the soft housing market how much my house was worth. I had bought it during the last soft market so even though this market was worse I still had quite a bit of equity.

Later in the morning I asked to talk to Brad again. He told me "come right in Kurt."

"Thanks Brad."

"So how are things on the home front?"

"No better." I said.

"Well, I have to tell you, I had a couple of the office women come to me first thing this morning to tell me that they were glad they wouldn't be seeing Mr. Anderson any more. They told me of a few comments that he had made in the past that made them feel uncomfortable. I told them if ever in the future anyone makes them feel that way they should let me know immediately."

"Well, I'm sorry that they had to put up with that." I said.

"Well we won't have to worry about that any more. I called the owner and told him. He told me that Mr. Anderson would be let go today. When he told me that I told him we may have more work for him soon then."

I smiled at that. I hated to hurt Mary, but whether she knew it or not she was getting hurt by her husband already.

"Hey Brad, I'd like to talk to you about my future with the company."

"You're not quitting are you?!" He said with a look of a deer caught in headlights.

"I think I'd like to pursue a transfer to the London, Ontario plant. Either that or the New Jersey plant, preferably Ontario though. Once everything is settled with the divorce I would be happy to transfer back if you'll have me."

"Kurt, I think I can make it happen, but I want you back here ASAP."

I chose London because I wasn't sure if I would be paying alimony but it may be harder to collect if I'm in another country.

"Also Brad, I'd like to be "terminated" on the 15^th of December. I have 4 weeks of vacation and 10 personal days that I'd like to use at that point. If I go to court I want them to see that I am without employment. I don't want you to do anything illegal so if I have to get fired and rehired in London that would be okay with me. I'll lose my seniority but it would be worth it."

Melanie would find herself having to go back to work somewhere. Not sure after 18 years if her degree would help her at all. A lot has changed in Human Resources in those years.

That would be payback number 3 after the chlamydia and the divorce. Now who is the clueless one?

After I got back to my office I called Ben in New Jersey to ask about Cornell University. He told me it was already in the works and she should have her acceptance letter within a couple weeks. Awesome!! One more thing to check off my list.

I called Cornell's Administration and asked for the Dean of Admissions. They put me right through. I told him my daughter was planning on attending and I wondered if I could pay her 4 year tuition, room and board, and book cost ahead of time. He sounded happy and said, "Sure, as soon as she is accepted we can work up a total for you." I thanked him and gave him my contact information. Another thing to check off my list.

I decided to wait to talk to Brad about my plans for Thanksgiving weekend. I might use that time to check out the plant and check on living accommodations.

I called the lawyer and spoke to him. I told him that, if I went ahead with the divorce, I wanted her to be served on December 20^th in the afternoon at my house. I wondered if I could be that specific? I knew it was a Saturday and I would be willing to pay extra for that. He assured me that they could arrange that, all I needed to do was let him know a week ahead of time.

Then I called a florist. I needed to find out if I could have a delivery on December 20^th at a specific time. "I would need a guarantee that you can do that?" I asked. "Yes we can do that. We just need an address and at least 3 days notice. There will be an extra charge because we will have to send a delivery person on a separate run."

"No problem." I said telling them I will call the first of that week if I need it to happen. I still wasn't sure there was no turning back. Could we reconcile? Thanksgiving weekend would be the deadline. I asked them, "If I wanted 17 red roses and a black rose how far in advance do you need to know?"

"Just a week." They assured me.

"If I wanted it in an 8 ½ by 11 box would that be possible?"

They told me that wasn't a standard flower box but they could use a box that a ream of paper comes in and decorate it so it doesn't look like a paper box, if that would be okay with me.

"Sure, thank you. I will call you next month and let you know all the details."

Another thing checked off my list.

I'd have to wait until December 20^th to mail out the DVD to Mary and on Christmas day I'd be emailing Jack a picture of himself with the hooker and hoping he had enjoyed his present.

For Melanie I wanted to make a photo album of all the happy memories of our time together. I know I may sound like an ass but I wanted her to feel the guilt of what she threw away.

I probably should talk to KJ about taking a trip to Cornell University to see the campus. I know she would miss spending time with her grandparents but if I was right they would be kind of busy dealing with Melanie. I'd have to let KJ know we'd be leaving at 4:00 on December 20^th but not to tell her mom. I should probably wait till after Thanksgiving to tell her about that.

That weekend would be the litmus test of our marriage, whether it was a base upon which we could rebuild it or an acid that destroys it.

At lunch I talked to Brad again and asked him if I could take off the rest of the day. He said, "Sure, see you in the morning." I would really miss working with him. I hope that I would be able to come back to work with him soon.

I went home. Melanie wasn't there. I wondered if she was at "work" or maybe consoling her "lover". I went downstairs and checked the computer. No calls recorded so maybe she was at work.

I decided that now would be a good time to start going through my stuff, you know, the crap we all save thinking that it will be needed some day. I would start on the filing cabinet. She would never notice if I weeded through all the old taxes and owner's manuals for things we no longer needed.

I was able to clear out almost 3 drawers of crap. I postponed dealing with the important paperwork, i.e. House purchase, major appliances, medical bills. I'd look through those later. I would be including a lot of that in the memory photo album for Melanie. Almost 20 years of marriage cleaned out and in the shredder.

Next I found the shoe boxes with all of our photos, at least the ones before the digital age that is. I put them in the filing cabinet so they would all be together when I started that project. I would need to go through the photos on our computer to print off copies of those also, or maybe I would download them and have a copier place print them on photo quality paper. I wanted to make this look professional didn't I?

Then I decided to go out to the garage and organize and pack up my tools. Melanie would never notice those either. I put them in boxes and stored them in the basement. When it came time to move my stuff out it would be up the stairs, out the garage, and to my car.

At about 4:30 I decided to throw some steaks on the grill. It was cold out but I really enjoy steak fresh off the grill. I also grilled some corn on the cob and asparagus. I threw three potatoes in the oven to bake and around 5:30 both Melanie and KJ were home.

"You made dinner? What time did you get home?" Melanie asked me.

"It was slow at work so I took off half a day." I said. That would get Melanie even more worried.

We sat down to dinner and Melanie said, "I got a call from Mary. Jack was laid off today."

"Laid off, more like fired ." I thought to myself. "That's terrible." I said, "What is he going to do?"

"Get his resume' out there and try to find another job." She said.

"It's a good thing Mary has a job." I said. One more jab to give Melanie a little more anxiety.

"Are you sure your company is okay? You did say that it was slow." She said anxiously.

"As far as I know we are." I said.

We finished the rest of the meal with KJ telling us about what was going on in her life. Typical teenage things but it was good to listen to her. Boy would I miss that when I was gone. You bet I would be calling her on a regular basis though.

The next few days went by with no new developments and yes no sex. Again that was okay because I wasn't going to take any chances.

It was Thursday, one week before Thanksgiving. Melanie, KJ and I were sitting down to dinner. KJ says, "Um ... mom, dad?"

"Yes Kaylee?" Melanie said.

"Kelly asked me if I could join her family for a ski trip to Colorado over the Thanksgiving weekend."

"When would you be leaving?" I asked

She sheepishly said, "Wednesday afternoon, right after the half day at school."

"Melanie, were your parents flying up for Thanksgiving this year?"

"No, they are just coming the Saturday before Christmas and staying for a week."

"Well, my parents are spending time with my youngest brother and their new baby, so it's okay with me if it is okay with your mom." I said.

"Mom, is it okay?"

"Yeah, I suppose. Your dad and I will just have Thanksgiving by ourselves. It will be practice for when you leave for college next fall."

"Thanks mom. Thanks dad. I'll call Kelly and tell her after dinner."

"I guess we're going to have to start getting used to being alone Melanie." I said looking at my wife. She had no idea how alone she would be come next year if she didn't come clean soon. But then again, maybe I would be the only one alone. I wondered if Mary would divorce Jack. If so, Melanie would be with Jack.

The rest of the dinner had KJ talking about where they were planning on going, staying, and what they were planning on doing. Sometimes women can talk non-stop without anyone else saying a word. It did sound fun though. It made me think that I hadn't been to Colorado's Capitol Building yet. I needed to start doing something to reach my personal goals.

The next morning I made an appointment to talk to Brad. He was someone I could confide in. I stepped into his office at 2:00. "Brad, I would like to talk to you about Thanksgiving weekend."

"Are you and the family going somewhere? Do you need a few extra days?" He asked.

"No, just the opposite, KJ is going to go skiing in Colorado for the weekend with one of her friends and the family. I want to give Melanie enough rope to hang herself, figuratively that is. I'd like to have an 'emergency' at the New Jersey plant that would take me out of town Thursday evening through Monday afternoon. That should be more than enough time for her and Jack to get together. I'm betting it will be at my house so I'll have proof."

"Wow, you really don't think you two can work it out?"

"If she comes clean before Thanksgiving weekend than there is a chance. If not and she does what I think she will do than 'it's all over but the crying'." I said that last expression tongue in cheek but it was more true than I wanted to admit.

"So what do you want from me?" Brad asked.

"I need you to make a call to me Thanksgiving afternoon and tell me I have a flight booked for 7:00 pm. I'll make sure Melanie picks up the phone so she'll know it is from you and she'll believe it's legit."

"Okay, I can do that. What if she comes clean before then?"

"I'll tell you that I can't do it, that I have a wife I need to spend some time with."

"That would be the truth," I thought to myself. If she did come clean it would take all weekend to get through this. Driving home for the weekend part of me hoped she would come clean. I really loved her and would hate to lose what we once had.

I thought about it all Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. I was less than talkative, to say the least. Sunday night I said to KJ and Melanie that since KJ was going to be gone Wednesday we should all go out to dinner Tuesday evening.

"That sounds like a great idea." KJ said. "I was feeling a little guilty that I would miss Thanksgiving."

"I'll try to get a reservation at 'The Lark'." That was an upscale restaurant in West Bloomfied. A condemned man gets a last meal, doesn't a condemned marriage deserve the same?

Monday I called the restaurant first thing and was told that in fact they did have an opening. The hostess said that Wednesday night was booked but tomorrow at 7:30 was available. I texted Melanie and KJ and told them we were on for 7:30 tomorrow night. I got a text back immediately from KJ but didn't hear from Melanie until about 3:00 in the afternoon. It made me wonder what she had been doing. Now that Jack was unemployed I could probably guess.

Monday night Melanie asked me if Jack could use me as a reference on his resume'.

"Sure, I'll take phone calls from potential employers for him." She came right back with, "Mary would really appreciate it."

I couldn't wait to get those calls. I'd clue them in on what a horn dog he is.

Tuesday night we had a great dinner. Melanie looked at the menu and said, "Can we afford this?"

"Sure honey, I make good money, why can't I splurge every once in a while?"

We talked about old times, vacations, KJ's sports, and school. We talked for an hour as we ate. It was good to reminisce. If this didn't get Melanie to come clean I don't think anything would.

When we got home KJ finished packing and KJ and I took everything over to Kelly's so that they could leave right after school. I spoke with Mr. Behrands and told him thanks for taking KJ along. "Can I pay for her accommodations?"

"She's staying in a room with Kelly. There is no extra charge and I wouldn't think of taking money from you. It's our treat."

"Well thank you. I hope to repay you sometime." I said.

"Don't even think about it." He said and actually sounded quite sincere.

On the way home I gave KJ a couple hundred dollars and told her that when she got back to call me so I could pick her up. I would have some news for her then. She was curious and said, "Tell me now."

"No, when you get back. Just make sure you call me to pick you up." I reiterated.

"Okay dad."

"Thanks KJ, you are a great daughter. Make sure you behave while you're in Colorado."

"I will dad."

"I know you will."

Then she said something that showed me how perceptive my daughter was. "I hope whatever has been bothering you for the last month gets resolved." Then she kissed my cheek.

We pulled into our garage, we got out, and she went to bed. I stayed up for a little while longer, just thinking. When I went to bed Melanie was already asleep. I'm glad she could sleep. I would have another restless night.

Wednesday at work was probably a lot like most places the day before Thanksgiving. Production was low. Everyone wanted to start their long weekend early. Half the office staff left at noon. I was support for production so I didn't leave until 4:00.

I got home ahead of Melanie so I went down and checked the laptop. Mary had come over and was talking to her about Jack. Mary was complaining that Jack was depressed and hadn't wanted to do anything, not even sex. "Well a job is everything to a man. They get their self-worth from it. He'll be okay when he gets another job."

"Did you talk to Kurt about helping him out?" She asked.