When One Door Closes...

Maddie had flown in for the wedding. She is a freshman at Michigan State, but she didn't want to miss her big brother's wedding, so I flew her in. She, Ethan, and Haley have developed a solid relationship, so much so that they can kid her about being my "favorite child."

It's very interesting for me to watch the three of them together. The argument that it's nurture over nature when it comes to raising children seems to be right for us, because Maddie and I have an unbreakable bond that even Cherry has commented on. While I wouldn't wish what we shared early on to happen to anyone else, adversity has forged us just a bit closer than we might otherwise be.

Adversity has also probably helped Cherry and I as well. We both know that you can never taken anything for granted, and we treasure our time together as we figure out our new life as empty-nesters. I can say that it hasn't taken Cherry very long to figure out that empty nest means no one in the next room overhearing anything, and she has turned it loose a few notches in the bedroom. And hearing her screams of pleasure just about sends me into a frenzy and makes me want to please her even more. There are mornings where we both head into work a little stiff and sore from a big night of play.

When all the usual wedding chores were taken care of at the reception, Cherry and I hit the dance floor. Maddie hit it, too, with one of the Ethan's groomsmen, but not before being warned by Ethan that he shouldn't mess with "my dad's favorite child," or there would be hell to pay. I grinned as he said it.

I started to come back to the table after about a half-dozen dances, but Maddie wanted one with me so I stayed out for one more. I noticed that Cherry and Traci had nothing to say to each other, despite being seated within talking distance.

"Feel the frost coming from that side of the room?" Maddie asked when she got within talking distance.

Perceptive.

When I finally went back to the table, Cherry got up and joined Maddie on the dance floor. A minute later, I felt that touch on my shoulder. Apparently we were going for round two, I thought.

"Well, aren't you going to gloat about Bob dumping me?" Traci asked as she leaned in.

"Not my circus. Not my monkeys," I responded. "I know this is probably going to surprise you, but I rarely think of you at all. I don't wish you any harm, but I could give a rat's ass about your life and what goes on with it. We had 18 great years, and that was over years ago. Now I've got a pretty good new life working, and I don't choose to spend my time thinking about the past ... or what might have been."

I had been watching the dance floor while we were talking, and now I turned to face Traci. That's when I saw it ... the fear. The fear of heading into her retirement years alone. That was just one more factor she apparently hadn't considered all those years ago, because she thought I was a sure-bet lock to stand down in the face of her threats to destroy my life in the divorce. For a brief moment I almost felt sorry for her, but then I realized that she would be trying to crush my soul if the roles had been reversed in this conversation.

"You do know I was an asshole then; I'm still an asshole," I said as I got up from the table and joined my girls on the dance floor.