Ed! I Want You to Have an Affair

After making herself a coffee she sat down and went through the divorce petition. The first punch was when she learned that it was her own words to her husband that had made him suspicious. Her husband was wondering why she had been asking him to deliberately hurt and use another human being for his personal satisfaction.

But it was the fact that Mom and Dad Adams had informed him of the DNA match from Ancestry.Com. That had led him to the discovery of April's true parentage giving him undeniable proof of the fact that she had been in an affair. Grace began to realize that Ed had to now know that it had been her conduct that had almost broken them up before April was born.

It was at that moment she understood that Ed would have to know if it was still going on. Ed had been the one behind what happened last night. Ed was the one that was exposing the hidden facts about her life.

Just as she took another sip of coffee the doorbell rang. Getting up she went to the front door and opened it to discover it was the next-door neighbor that Luke did not like.

"Mr. Primrose," She said. "What can I do for you."

He handed her a legal envelope and said, "Ed your husband used my place as a base for his operations against you and your long term lover last night. I gladly allowed him to because Luke Barrow got my son sentenced for the maximum as a first time offender. I just thought you would like to know that the information in the envelope I handed to you was made last night is also being delivered by courier to everyone he knows on your side of the family this afternoon. Ed asked me to ask you if you're still laughing at him now?"

She watched him walking away with the biggest smile on his face.

After going back into the kitchen, Grace opened the envelope. It was filled with pictures. They started with her letting herself into Luke's house with her own key. Then with her greeting him at the door when he got home. Their sexual foreplay in the living room. Images of each other being undressed by the other. Her taking his manhood into her mouth. He in turn eating her out. The picture's left nothing out. It even had them being confronted by the police officers.

Ed's team were professionals. The takedown was so complete that it now looked like he was working with a bunch of police officers who wanted to get back at Luke for their own reasons.

But it was the last printed page signed by her husband that said it all. If it became public it would create a whole bunch of problems that they had not prepared for. Her plans to force her husband to submit to her wishes were blowing up in her face big time.

The question now was how to minimize the damage caused by Ed making it a public spectacle.

Grace!

I knew last Sunday by the time we got home from Nashville that you were trying to set me up so you could divorce me. Since then I admit I have been trying to figure out what I had done to cause your love for me to turn to pure hate.

Now I know why. I see that you blame me for the things you believe were lacking in your life when we only had the two children. I believe you felt trapped in the marriage and wanted your carefree single life back.

Otherwise, you would not have willingly turned to him to rediscover the single life again. In doing that you allowed him to take you away from what you hated for a few hours a week.

I know that the only reason you stayed in a marriage with a man you hated and viewed as dead was that Luke did not want the responsibility of raising kids. ( Not even his.)

There was no way with your view of me that you would leave them alone with a piece of shit like me. Your pride would not allow it. That resulted in you living with a lifetime of deliberate lies.

Each day you both got away with it, your contempt for who and what I am grew. I became a bigger fool and idiot in your eyes. How much did Luke and you laugh about the unknowing cuck? Did you inspire his lovemaking with you by degrading me or making fun of me?

What I can't forgive or forget is the message you and the one you view as your real husband have sent to our children because it will affect them for the rest of their lives.

What I haven't been able to figure out is how much entertainment did Luke and you get by playing with me and our children's lives as if we were nothing but chess pieces on a game board.

The kvos12 news reporter summed it up well when he asked the two of you if you were still laughing at Grace Adams's husband Edward Adams now.

I watched Amy, Eric, and April watch as you and your lover exposed what you planned to do to me via the public thanks to the mass media. It was devastating to watch our children as you joked and laughed about how easy it was going to be to take the stupid dufus moron down.

Eric our only son said, "If our Mother thinks that your nothing but a piece of shit that should be allowed to dry out before being beaten into the ground. What does she really think of us?"

I have not asked them what your relationship will be with them going forward. For now, I can honestly say its nonexistent. You and your lover Luke's utter disgust and contempt for me caused that.

At least we both know that you are laughing in joy because you have left me with the reputation of being a hapless dufus for the rest of my life. Perhaps tonight the two of you can raise a glass in victory.

ED.

Grace's hands started trembling so much that she dropped the paper. She came across as a spiteful, bitter, hateful and cruel uncaring bitch. It was clear that she came across as a mother who did not give a fuck about her kids, husband, or any other human being. The only thing she cared about was herself and getting her carnal needs satisfied.

Then her sobs broke the silence in the room. Ed was the only person she knew who could destroy one's credibility without condemning them directly. Everyone reading it could not dispute his observations about what their conduct said.

In his eyes, everything she had ever done was to prolong her lifestyle and not out of love. He must have figured out that it was Luke who was pressing her to leave him and the children before she became pregnant with April.

It was Luke's new job that had forced them to move up their long term plans. They were originally going to wait till April graduated high school. When her real parentage could be revealed without any real consequences. He was right to a point because she was not laughing now. He had pointed out effectively that it was their own conduct that proved what he had written to be true.

Ed believed that their contempt for who and what he was why they were attempting to take him down completely. Without saying it was a declaration of war. If he was going to go down, he would take them both down with him.

Grace picked up the divorce petition and continue reading. It was truly devastating. One of the suits against them was for fraud because of their hiding April's true parentage. She was being accused of emotional and mental abandonment, adultery, and slander. But when she looked at the dollar amount, they were asking for damages in the fraud case she felt sick. If he won both Luke and she would end up being dead broke for a very long time.

Ed and his lawyer were proving that they could no longer treat Ed as the dufus they believed he was.

------

Saturday was a madhouse for my two oldest and me. From first thing in the morning till about four in the afternoon we had family dropping in. Grace's parents, her two brothers, one sister, and their spouses came to offer their support. Each one bringing one of their favorite dishes to make sure we had something to eat.

Even my brother and sister came from out of town to check up on me. The three of us were smothered in love and support. Each one who came found it hard to comprehend how they could have been deceived by Grace for so long. They all agree with what had come out on the social media was proof that she was trying to destroy me out of hate.

My father in law and I had taken a cold beer and had gone out on the back deck for a few moments.

"Edward let it go," he said. "Cora is inside to give you some privacy and will keep them away until your settled back down."

He stayed with me until it had worked itself out.

"Cora and I plan to change our will," he said. "What would have been Grace's share will be divided among your three children. She may be our daughter, but I will never forgive her for what she has become."

We had just finished getting the house emptied when my father phoned.

"April met the lady," My dad said. "You can definitely see a bit of family resemblance. Their meeting went well. Mrs. Smith seemed interested in your family's situation and got April to open up to her about her feelings on the matter. It was good to see because she was holding it in."

"The lawyer got the blood sample he required and then took me out for a private talk," My dad said. "He asked me about Luke Barrow, and I told him what we all knew. I learned that his real father is in jail for life for killing his lover's husband. Luke would have been left his real mother's estate if she April hadn't come into her life."

"Don't worry dad," I replied. "Dale Britton has got a court order out on him restricting him from being within five hundred feet of any of us. It's been a busy day here a lot of the family from both sides have come to offer their support."

"We were put up at Mrs. Smith's estate as her guests. Your mother felt honored to be treated in such a regal way," dad explained. "April is up with Mrs. Smith right now. Both of us like her. Her lawyer said that it's been a long time since he had seen a smile on the grand old lady's face. Hang on I'm going to give the cell to your mom."

"Ed, I got the chance to talk to Beatrice alone for a while. She asked me what kind of son you were, so I talked about your life, in general, trying to be as frank and honest as I could. We got into great detail what had transpired this last week."

"She told me that you had left it up to her to reveal to April why she wanted to see her. She said it had been a long time since a stranger had shown her such respect then thanked all of us for showing her how to handle the situation concerning her estate." My mom went on to say, "Her plan is to leave it all in a trust in April's name to be managed by you until she turns twenty-five."

"Text me when you leave so that I can be sure to be around when you bring her home," I asked before hanging up.

I texted April saying we are all missing you and sending our love dad.

Finally, we had time to tidy the place up before David and Cheryl came over with my car. I had to apologize to her for forgetting to return it.

"The police Chief is seeing a chance to take Luke Barrow down," Cheryl said. "He and Dale are working together. Dale has given him some questionable things for the investigators to look into."

"The staff was all somber and upset when I got back," David said. "I told them in general that some of us had been aware of what was going on for most of the week and were helping where we could."

"It's been an emotional rollercoaster here since Thursday night," I said. "The kids at times are still finding it hard to deal with so I will be taking Monday off too."

"Have you heard from Grace at all," Cheryl asked?

"Not since Thursday night," I replied. "Luke and she are most likely to busy getting on with their lives since they have publicly made clear how they view us."

My youngest daughter called me early Sunday morning to ask me if it was okay for her and her grandparents to come home late on Monday. I gave my blessings if her grandparents agreed. She thanked me for forcing her to go. I asked why?

April said that "Mrs. Smith had gotten me to accept the fact that it was not my fault because her mother's affair had brought me into the world. Mrs. Smith made it clear daddy that all of us were innocent victims and did not deserve what was brought down on us because of the conduct of her son and my mother."

"I love you, daddy," She said before she ended the call.

--------

Amy, Eric and I watched as my mom and dad pulled into our driveway Monday Evening. My parents looked stressed and tired. As soon as she climbed out of the car she ran straight into my arms. I must admit it was nice to have my youngest daughter back home.

My dad popped the trunk and brought her suitcase in. Eric took it up to her bedroom right away. Then three of them went into the family room so April could tell them all about her new grandmother. It gave my parents and me a chance to catch up.

We went into the kitchen. While I made a fresh pot of coffee my parents gave me their impression of Mrs. Beatrice Smith.

"She was at peace when we left," My dad said. "It was as if she had reached the point that she was ready to accept her death. Meeting April and April's acceptance of her was important to her."

Mom took out a legal-size envelope out of her purse and handed it to me explaining, "This was given to me by her lawyer as per Beatrice's instructions."

I opened it up and took out the letter, Opening the first thing I noticed was a check for fifty thousand.

The letter was short and to the point. The grand lady thanked me for granting her request. She was letting me know that she had already lived beyond her expected date before I had contacted her. DNA had confirmed the biological connection. April is a beautiful young lady; you have raised her well. Use the funds I have given you to get you through the rough period you're dealing with and remember to remain true to your values."

I let my parents read it.

It was hard to comprehend that my parents and I may have granted a person their dying request. Over coffee, I explained to them everything that had transpired while they were on their trip. I told them I felt the worse was over emotionally for us as a family, and that starting tomorrow we would be going back to our normal routine.

For the rest of the week, all things considering it went smoothly. Grace had tried to reach out to each of our children by cellphone and was basically told not to call again. The Corporate head office was ecstatic that I was no longer handling the sales meeting and started looking for a sales manager for the first time in ten years.

I was sitting in my office reviewing some monthly sales figures when Cathy stuck her head through the door entrance saying, "The shit has hit the fan."

I looked up at her and said, "What now?"

"I got an email informing me that your last letter to Grace was posted online in the southeastern Missouri newspapers web site."

I went to the web site and found the section called 'speak out' to discover it. Cathy came behind my desk and read it while looking over my shoulder. By the time she finished reading it, she was sobbing.

"I wrote it when I was emotionally upset," I explained. 'Maybe I was a bit too hard."

"No Ed," Cathy said. "You just stated what her long term conduct showed in a cold direct way. Either one of them could have ended it and come clean. Luke got the benefit of a long term relationship without the cost."

"That's what I thought," I said.

"It's not very often the society in general gets to see the cost of someone conduct on the family in such a public way," Cathy said. "For everyone who has been divorced like me, it's a stark reminder of the pain and misery they had to go through before they started living again."

"Look at the last posted comment," I said as I read it aloud. "As a feminist for most of my life, I have fought for equality and empowerment. What this woman and her lover did to her husband and children has forever stained our movement."

Grace and Luke were at Charlies Bar and Grill eating dinner. The place on Friday nights was usually jammed to the doors but tonight there was nothing but empty tables around them. When they asked the waitress why she explained we have people waiting who refuse to be seen publicly sitting near you two. The waitress went on to say I guess it because most have read the posting of your husband's last letter to you Mrs. Adams in the Southeast Missourian Newspaper website."

Grace and Luke asked for the bill and quickly left knowing that for the next little while they best stay out of the public as much as possible. Both were having to adjust to the fact that because of their conduct their world was shrinking big time.

It was as they were walking out that Grace noticed her mother and father sitting at a table waiting for their order. Grace headed over to them. Luke followed.

When she spoke her father looked at them and said, "Mr. Barrow I suggest you get your slut out of here and allow my wife and I eat our meal in peace."

Grace left the restaurant in tears, finally comprehending that if you go too far there is no going back. She was going to live the rest of her life with the consequences of what Luke and she had done. When they went back to Luke's place they went to the site and saw for themselves what the comments said. It was clear to both of them the public's out and out hate for both of them.

Three Months Later:

I was sitting in the passenger seat of my car watching April drive. We had left this morning to head over to Wichita Kansas because we had learned that her grandmother Beatrice had passed away. We were driving to the airport to get the private plane the estate had provided us. April was taking it hard since they had grown close thanks to their constant phone calls to each other she had returned from the visit.

Amy and Eric had been a big help, as a result, the four of us were getting closer. Both of them were being to push me to start dating but I have been sort of laid back about that. Once burnt twice shy.

Luke and Grace were now living in St Louis. The feds had allowed him to start his job early. The county was glad to get rid of him early if he paid back the over forty-five thousand dollars in questionable expenses.

They were now living in a two-bedroom rented apartment in case they had to declare bankruptcy because of the civil suit that was coming up. Under Missouri bankruptcy laws they could only keep ten thousand each in equity.

Our divorce had been agreed to as per state law. Grace had to pay me support for the kids as long as they were in school and cover fifty percent of their living expenses if they lived on campus. The civil trial suit for fraud was to begin in two weeks. My kids were still refusing to talk to their mother, neither would her side of the family. She had learned the hard way that people will only take so much bullshit then walk away forever.

April had to endure a meeting set up by the state's child services with her biological father. For him, it did not go well. She told him his mother had told her that he was just like his real father a narcist that shouldn't be allowed to be near any female. In front of child services, representatives April told him that both her mother and he were dead in her eyes.

We attended the funeral for her Grandmother. Afterward, the lawyer disclosed to both of us just how big her inheritance was. For both of us, it was overwhelming. As the trustee after discussing it with my daughter, we decided to sell her grandmother's home with all the contents in it except for her personal jewelry and a few photo's that April wanted.

We were back home the school year was ending. I was getting ready for the first day of court on Wednesday when April came into the den.

"Dad can you get a meeting with Luke and mom and their lawyers set up with the two of us and Dale on Tuesday," April said.

"I believe so, but why," I asked?

"I want them to see the real cost of what they did," April said. "Grandma Beatrice had suggested this to me."