The Other Woman

This fictional short story has been sitting in my head at least 6 months waiting to get out and quite frankly it's starting to piss me off! Hopefully now it's out that bestselling novel will come to the forefront.

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Looking up from my plate, I finally pluck the courage to speak:

'I want to tell you', I pause to regain some composure. 'I have dealt with the Other Woman; she is gone!' I tell my husband Brian as he continues to shovel in the dinner I have painstakingly slaved over for half the afternoon.

'Ha!' he replies without glancing up and shovelling more food into his mouth. He doesn't believe that me - his 'house-mouse' - as he calls me; would dare interfere with his goings on. It is an unspoken rule; he earns the bacon - he can act like a pig.

'No - really', I continue. 'I've had you followed for weeks now, I found out where she was and I know what you've been up to on all these so called business trips'. Brian finally looks up at that admission and looks me straight in the eye. But I win - as his eyelids flicker with fear. For months he's been telling me he has to go out of town  on new (and always lucrative) business - and while he may be 'wooing' a new client he always takes 'her' - never inviting me.

Not the mother of his two sons; the heirs to his kingdom. No... I'm always left to my own devices in a town where I know no-one - and that's the way he likes it. But small towns talk. And soon I was being filled-in with details of my husbands exploits by the local grocer.

The first time left me red faced, but soon I was accustomed to being traded in for a newer, younger model with a hard body and a reputation for being fast. Which is how I came about to hiring the disgustingly expensive but highly valuable private investigator to follow 'Bad-boy Brian' as the townsfolk had taken to calling him.

Brian clears his throat, but I do not let him speak.

'Don't act so goddamn suprised' I tell him. 'You've known for ages I'm onto your shenanigans and quite frankly I'm sick of your innocent act' I chastise. He has at least the decency to look ashamed at that. And it gives me the courage to continue.

'I contacted a man I know who gave me a great price and she is now no longer and I'm glad. You made promises when we moved to this godforsaken town and you broke them. YOU!' I'm starting to yell now as my emotions take hold - or perhaps the wine I've been drinking since preparing dinner.

'She is gone and you need to deal with that. If you so much as look at another I'll do the same' I promise. 'Dob me in; send me to jail - I don't care - but I'm sick of this!' My husbands face falls at the realisation of what I've done sinks in and tears start to well in his eyes. It is as that moment I realise that not only have I 'offed' a rival, but also a possible true love.

I can still remember the day he first saw 'her' ..... we were having a rare pub meal and she was sitting across the road from us. If I hadn't yanked his shirt I'm sure he might have floated right over to her. She had a 'presence' about her. Even I liked what I saw; but I'm not into that - so I feigned tiredness and begged to be taken home. Soon after driving us home, Brian made his excuses and left to see her again.

After meeting a few times Brian decided that was what he wanted and housed her a few streets away. I wasn't aware of the situation until our neighbour commented on seeing Brian out locally when he should have been 300kms away like he'd said.

'Please Brian, I'm sorry but I had no alternative.' I try to explain. 'She was causing problems in our relationship and you know it. For gods sake the twins barely know who you are; and you said we were coming here for lifestyle so we could spend more time together' I say, desperately fighting tears.

I look at Brians crestfallen face again as he stares into his beer; tears welling up as he does. In 10 years I've only seen him cry twice; once when the twins were born and the other when his mother passed away. But not like this......... not because of me. As I continue watching his reaction to my 'bombshell' I see him steel himself from his emotion as anger overtakes his grief.

His voice crackles with emotion as he finally says 'I can't believe you sold my boat'.

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PS - THE GEORGE CLOONEY PIC IS ESPECIALLY FOR MY MOTHER - SINCE SHE BLOG-STALKS ME RATHER THAN FACEBOOK STALKS ME!