The Story of Dan and Denise

Her manager, Andrew, returned from the men's room and she sat up straight in her chair and smiled at him as he took the seat next to hers. She couldn't deny the electric sensation she felt whenever he was near. She experienced that sensation the first time they met face-to-face for her initial interview. Not only did she find him physically attractive, but she was drawn to his personality as well. He was bold and self-assured, and seemed unafraid to take risks. She felt herself blushing and looked away from him. Aside from an occasional appearance by the bartender, they were the only two souls in the hotel bar.

"One more, and then I'm calling it a night," he remarked, signaling to the bartender.

"Oh, I've had more than enough already," Denise protested.

He scoffed. "One more won't do any harm, I promise." He had a very persuasive manner about him, she had to admit.

The bartender set two more drinks in front of them and then disappeared once more into the back room.

"I know you work with these people on a daily basis," Andrew continued, "but it'll be good for you to meet with them face-to-face. The virtual meeting apps are very cost-effective, but they can be very impersonal." He paused for a moment, and then began to laugh.

"What's so funny?"

"I was just remembering this one time when I was on a call using one of those apps. I was sharing my desktop, and as one of our IT guys was speaking, a colleague of mine sent me a private message telling me that IT guy doesn't know what he's talking about."

"Oh no..."

"Oh, yes! Of course, I was sharing my entire desktop, so everyone on the call saw the message. I clicked out of it as quickly as I could, and the IT guy just kept talking. I figured he hadn't seen the message. Then he finished what he was saying and added, 'Oh by the way, I do know what I'm talking about!'"

"Oh my god!" Denise squealed, and burst into laughter.

Andrew laughed so hard his face turned red. Then it happened. He leaned across the table and kissed her. It happened so quickly and unexpectedly that it took a moment for her brain to register it. She reflexively returned his kiss at first, but then backed away quickly.

"Andrew...," she said.

"I know," he said, looking into her eyes. "I'm sorry. I couldn't help it. I just couldn't control that impulse any longer."

"I...I don't know what to say."

"Don't say anything," he said. He reached into his pocket and tossed a few bills on the bar. "I'm in room 311. What you do with that information is up to you, but no pressure either way."

He smiled and turned to walk toward the elevator, leaving her sitting alone and breathless.

***

Dan's chest heaved as he flopped over onto his side of the bed, soaking the sheet beneath him. Denise returned from the bathroom, strolling naked into the room. She stepped into her panties and a pair of thin cotton shorts, and then pulled a tee shirt over her head before returning to bed.

"Where the hell did that come from?" Dan remarked.

She giggled. "They say absence makes the pussy grow moister."

"Then you're going to have to go away more often!" he joked.

She playfully punched him in the chest. "Jerk."

"We haven't had sex like that in a long time," he said. "I hope we didn't wake the kids."

"They have school tomorrow. They'd better be fast asleep if they know what's good for them."

"If they aren't, we may have traumatized them for life," Dan said. Another punch followed. "So how did it go?"

"It was fine," she said, yawning. "The usual nonsense. San Diego has their heads up their asses. We just needed to straighten them out."

"Anything exciting happen?" he asked.

She hesitated for a moment before responding, "No, just a pretty standard boring business trip. How about you? Anything happen while I was away?"

"Not at all," he said. "Just the usual boring stuff. You didn't miss a thing."

They lay together in silence for several moments before Dan kissed his wife on the forehead and bid her good-night. The following morning, the kitchen was a scene of frantic chaos as Holly and Alex rushed to eat their breakfast, pack their book bags, and scramble out the door to catch their buses. Eventually, the chaos diminished, leaving Dan and Denise seated across their small kitchen table, enjoying their coffee.

"I have to get going," Denise said, glancing at the time on her phone.

"Have a good day, honey," Dan responded, kissing her softly as she passed by him to deposit her coffee mug in the sink.

She turned to leave, but then stopped on the spot and stood motionless. After a pause, she turned to face him, wearing a look of trepidation. "Dan? There's something I need to tell you."

***

Dan paced back and forth across the kitchen floor. His face was a dark shade of crimson and a vein protruded from his neck.

"Say something, please," Denise begged.

"I fucking knew something happened!" he shouted, stopping at last. "I fucking knew it!"

"Dan...calm down. Please."

"Don't tell me to calm down! You fucking kissed him! And worse – you kept it from me! Why didn't you tell me as soon as it happened?"

"I...I knew that you'd blow it out of proportion."

"Oh, well, why wouldn't I? Seriously, Denise. You kissed your boss!"

"I...it wasn't really a kiss. He...he just briefly touched my lips."

"And you didn't kiss him back?"

She hesitated, which gave him his answer. "It...it wasn't like that. I'm telling you the truth."

"How the fuck do I know what's true or not true anymore?" he shouted. "How do I know what else you've neglected to tell me? For all I know you fucked him, too!"

"I didn't fuck him!"

"How do I know that? Huh? How can I possibly trust you to ever tell me the truth again?"

"He...invited me to his room, but I didn't go."

"What!? And you're just now telling me this? See, this is exactly what I'm talking about!"

She approached him and tried to touch him, but he pulled away. "Dan...I'm telling you the truth. I didn't want to make a big deal out of it, so I waited to tell you. That's all."

Dan contemplated her words for a moment before he was suddenly struck by a thought. "Last night," he said. "That was all because of him, wasn't it?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You fucked my brains out like you haven't done in years. But you weren't fucking me, were you? You were thinking about him the whole time."

"Don't be ridiculous," she said.

He chuckled and shook his head. "I've been so stupid," he said. "I've been playing the role of the good house-husband while you go off and do who knows what with the guys in your office."

She crossed her arms and shouted, "It isn't like that and you know it!"

"You've been dressing sexier, acting all flirty with men..."

"I have to dress this way – for my job!"

"Yeah...your job. Your job takes precedence over everything else, doesn't it?"

"It has to take precedence right now! It's the only income we have!"

He stopped in his tracks and glared at her. A sarcastic grin crept over his face and he waved his finger at her. "Ah, and there it is. I was wondering when you'd throw that in my face."

"I'm not throwing anything in your face," she said, softly. "I didn't mean it to come out that way."

"No, no, no," he said. "It's okay. We're airing it all out now, aren't we? This has been the elephant in the room for a long time."

She glanced at her cellphone. "I have to go," she said. "I'll be late enough as it is."

"Yeah, you go," he said with derision. "Say hi to Andrew for me."

She turned to walk away, but he stopped her by grabbing a hold of her shoulder.

"When you get out of work," he said, "don't come home."

She looked at him incredulously. "What do you mean?"

"I mean just what I said. Don't come home."

"Where am I supposed to go?"

"That's not my problem," he said.

"Dan, I'm not leaving my own home and my family."

"Either you leave or I leave," he said. "And I have to be here to watch the kids, since you don't get home until late at night. You can either quit your job or hire a nanny – and a chef, and a housekeeper, too. Or you can leave. It's as simple as that."

"But...for how long?"

"Until I can figure out what to do next," he said.

***

"Dammit, Alex, stay in the box!" Dan shouted from his position in the dugout.

Bill tossed another pitch toward the plate – a perfect strike. Alex backed away from the plate and attempted to swing, missing the pitch by more than a foot. Dan slammed his clipboard onto the dugout floor and marched toward the plate. He snatched the bat out of Alex's hands. Alex looked up at him, wide-eyed, attempting not to cry as the entire team watched from the field.

"You step into the goddamned box like this," Dan demonstrated. "You dig in with your back foot. When the pitch comes in, you step toward the pitcher -- toward the pitcher! You don't back away like a frightened little girl. Just step in and you swing the damn bat!"

Bill rushed toward the plate and got Dan's attention. He nodded to Matt and told him to take over.

"Take a break, Alex," Bill said. "Play in the field for a while, and we'll try again a little later, okay?"

Alex nodded and ran to the most secluded part of the field with his head down. Bill took Dan by the shoulder and guided him toward the dugout.

"What the hell?" Bill said in a whisper. "You can't embarrass him like that in front of the whole team."

"He just...he drives me fucking crazy sometimes," Dan said. He took a few deep breaths and nodded. "I know. You're right. I shouldn't have done that."

"What's going on with you, man?" Bill asked. "Is everything okay?"

Dan sighed and lowered his head. "No, it's not. We're just...having some trouble at home. Denise and I had a fight. She's not living with us at the moment."

"Shit," Bill said. "She left you?"

"More like I kicked her out," Dan explained.

Bill shook his head. "I'm sorry to hear that, man. If there's anything I can do..."

"There's nothing anyone can do. It is what it is. Our lives just haven't been the same since we moved out here. Denise is some other person I can't even recognize anymore. Holly is getting into trouble at school, and her grades are going downhill. Alex is getting picked on at his school, and now he's scared to death of a fucking ball."

"Go easy on him," Bill said. "The kid's going through a lot. You all are. He'll come around."

"Thanks, Bill," Dan said. He patted him on the back. "You're a good friend."

"Now go talk to your son," Bill responded.

***

Dan's heart sank when he answered the knock at the door.

"I never thought I'd have to knock at the door of my own home," Denise remarked with a tentative smile.

"What do you want?" Dan asked.

"It's been almost a week, Dan," she said. "It's time for me to come home, don't you think?"

Dan leaned against the door frame and sighed. "You just don't get it, do you?"

"No, Dan. I don't. Why don't you explain it to me? Why was that brief touch of lips so important to you that you'd throw away almost twenty years of marriage?"

"Because that 'brief touch of lips', as you put it, was betrayal, Denise. Not only did you betray me, but you lied about it."

"I never lied to you!"

"It was a lie of omission. You had every chance to tell me about it before you did, but you held back for a reason. Because of that, I don't know if I can ever trust you again."

She tried to place her hand over his, but he pulled away. "Dan...think about the kids. How long can they continue to believe I'm on a business trip? Think about what you're doing to our family. It's not necessary."

"I disagree," he stated in a detached monotone. "You're hardly ever here for the kids, anyway."

She simply stood and searched his face for a moment, looking for some recognition of the man she loved. When he asked her to leave, she thought he was merely overreacting and would come to his senses in short order. Too much time had passed, however, and it was clear that there were far more serious issues between them than she had realized.

"Will you at least agree to counseling?" she asked. "Are you willing to fight even a little bit to save this marriage? Or does it mean that little to you?"

"Fine," he said. "Just text me the details." He shut the door, leaving his wife standing alone and dejected.

***

"How did your interview go today?" Holly asked. She sat at the dinner table pushing food around her plate absent-mindedly. She hadn't been eating right for weeks, it seemed.

"It went okay," Dan responded. "I think they might actually call me in for a second interview."

"Dad, when is Mom coming home?" Alex asked.

"I don't know, buddy," Dan responded.

"I thought you said she was on a business trip," Holly said. "She's been gone for over a week. Where is she?"

"She and I...are having some problems," Dan said, choosing his words carefully. "We're working on them."

"What kind of problems?" Alex asked.

"Grown-up problems," Dan responded. "You kids don't need to worry about it."

"Are you getting a divorce?" Alex asked.

"Don't be an idiot," Holly responded.

"Holly!" Dan shouted. He then lowered his voice and tried to speak in a soothing tone. "No, buddy, we're just working on some things, that's all."

"I don't understand," Alex said. "I want to see Mom. Where is she?"

"She's staying at a hotel for now," Dan said.

"Can we see her?" Alex asked.

"Of course you can," Dan said. "Maybe I'll bring you there tomorrow. Okay?"

Alex smiled. "Okay, Dad."

***

Although Dan and Denise sat in chairs that were positioned side by side, they could not have felt further apart. They fidgeted uncomfortably and looked in opposite directions. Across from them sat their marriage counselor, who patiently awaited Dan's response to her question.

"It's not just about the kiss," he said at last. "It's about the deception. It's about disrespecting me, and disrespecting our marriage. It's about prioritizing other things ahead of our family. It's about her being totally okay with letting our sex life diminish to practically nothing. It's about making me feel like the low man on the totem pole – the last thing on her mind. She isn't the woman I married anymore. I honestly don't know who this woman is anymore."

After a pause, the counselor turned to Denise. "How do you feel about what he just said?"

Denise's eyes watered and she drew a deep breath. "I don't know what to say about that. People do change over time. We all do. I feel like I have changed, but I feel it's for the better. I spent years as a stay-at-home mom and I loved every minute of it. I wouldn't change it for the world. But now, I feel like I'm finally my own person. I'm not just Wife or Mom. I'm Denise."

"It's selfish," Dan blurted. "Isn't it? She went from thinking of her husband and children first to thinking only of herself."

"That's not true," Denise responded. She tried to control her emotions, but it was no longer possible. Tears streaked down her cheeks. The counselor gently nudged a box of tissues toward her.

"I find that when a couple's sex life becomes unsatisfying, it tends to evoke feelings of insecurity," the counselor suggested. "Dan, is it possible that your suspicions about Denise come from a place of insecurity?"

"You can call it insecurity if you want," Dan responded. "I call it a higher state of awareness. I'm finally seeing things as they really are for the first time in a while. All those 'late nights at the office.' The flirtatious behavior around other men. I see the way they look at her, and I know she gets off on it. If she really hasn't slept with her manager yet, it's only a matter of time, trust me."

Denise shook her head and dabbed her eyes with a tissue. "That's not true, Dan. I've never, ever, given you any reason to doubt my commitment to you. This is so unfair."

"Denise, I have to ask you," the counselor said, "at this point, would you say you're open to reconciliation?"

Denise nodded. She then turned to Dan and asked the same question.

"I'm not sure," he said, flatly.

***

Denise dropped a stack of papers on her manager's desk. Andrew smiled at her and nodded. She returned his smile with a half smirk and turned to leave.

"Hey," he said. "Is everything okay?"

Denise sighed and turned toward him. Her eyes glistened and she shuddered in an attempt to shake away her emotions. "Dan and I have been having some issues," she said.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Andrew said. "Is there anything I can do?"

"No, but thanks. We just have to work it out."

"I hope it's not because of what happened between us," he said.

"No, no. Well, it is, but it isn't. It's complicated. We've been through a lot of stress since we moved here. It's just too much to handle all at once, you know?"

He nodded in agreement. "You have seemed stressed out all week. You can use a night out to get your mind off of it. Why don't I take you to dinner tonight?"

"No, I can't," she said.

"Why not? I'm not asking you on a date. It's only dinner. Maybe a little wine. It'll be good for you to get out."

"I appreciate the offer. I really do. But I think I just need to be alone for a while."

"Okay," he said, "but if you change your mind, here's my cell number. Call me at any time." He scribbled on the back of a business card and slid it across the desk. She hesitated for a moment before taking it.

After work that evening, Denise sat on a chair in a small seating area in her hotel room. She reached across to the end table and grabbed a box of tissues, using one to wipe away her tears. She looked around at the drab furnishing and empty space and wondered how she had come to be in this desolate place. How did a once loving and stable marriage turn so rotten so quickly? What had she done to deserve this?

She recollected happier times, back in Missouri, when the children were younger and life was simpler. If she could go back in time, what would she have changed from that point forward? She thought she was doing the right thing by getting her advanced degree and finding a way to provide for the family while Dan got back on his feet. She thought the move to California would represent a fresh start for everyone in the family. Had she known how the events would unfold, perhaps she would have found another solution to their problems.

It was true that she had placed a high priority on her career, but she felt it was necessary, both for the sake of her family and herself. She worked hard for her degree, and she deserved all of the benefits that came with it. After so many years feeling trapped within her own house, it was liberating to experience life outside of the home for the first time in so many years. She took great pride in everything she had accomplished, and felt that her best days were ahead of her.

Whether it was because of her newly-restored physical fitness, her greater sense of confidence in herself, or some combination thereof, Denise could not ignore that men had been treating her differently. She had felt so fat, old, and ugly for so long, this new appreciation and attention from the men around her had become addicting. The more attention she received, the more she craved. Although Dan had always been quick to compliment her, she sometimes felt he did it out of husbandly duty. When other men complimented her, it felt genuine, and made a far greater impact on her ego.

She thought about what Dan had said during their counseling session. How could he not even consider reconciling at this point? Did their marriage really mean that little to him? Was the sin she committed so heinous that it could never be forgiven? She resented him for disrupting their family and refusing to work to save it. If he cared so little, why should she care at all?

She looked around the cramped room. It suddenly felt like a prison cell. Why was she punishing herself? She reached into her pocket and produced the business card. She tapped on her cellphone and held it to her ear.