A Ticket to Ride

"Ashley, why did you get a divorce?" I asked.

"The guy I married was an asshole," she spat. "We just didn't see eye to eye on things."

"Well, Karen and I don't see eye to eye on things either. We took vows in front of our friends and family. We had a contract of sorts and she chose to break it. That contract bound us together and without it, we have no trust left between us. If you can't understand that, I can get another lawyer," I said.

"Danny, I'm on your side," she said. "It's just that you're a great guy and I don't want to see you hurt. You already look like...like you lost your best friend. As time goes on you're going to feel more and lonelier. There are going to be times when you'll wish that maybe you had made and different choice. This is going to b painful, Danny. No one wins a divorce. So if there's any way you could think about taking her back...?"

I shook my head. "Okay," she said handing me a stack of papers to fill out. "I just wanted to be sure that you know what you want. For most people this is a really emotional time. You need to go into these decisions with a clear head and no doubts. I still believe that you should give it a few days before you make a decision and maybe talk to her, but you're the boss. I'm just taking your money."

John had remained silent throughout my talk with his daughter. He spoke up then. "So what about me, Danny!" he asked. "I'm assuming that when you said that I couldn't be your lawyer, you were thinking about suing my firm, right?"

"The thought had crossed my mind," I told him honestly.

"I think that you're just lashing out at any and everything that you think led to your pain," he said. "So let's look at this in real world terms. In order for you to get anything out of this, you have to prove that we knew about the affair and did nothing to stop or prevent it from happening. You need to prove that we violated or negated our non-fraternization clause in our employee handbook or at least that we failed to enforce it. Even if you prove that, most judges are going to look at it as being two consenting adults on their own time. Nothing happened here at the office. The burden of proving all of that is going to be on you. Even if you could prove any of that the chances of you getting a large monetary award are very slim. That is, unless you're talking about one of those internet divorce stories where the wronged husband gets millions of dollars and a cruise to Costa Rica. So what do you really want?"

"Danny, I feel as badly about this as you do," he said. "But the truth is you aren't going to be able to prove any of that because it isn't true. No one around here knew anything about what was going on with Brad and Karen. And now that we do know about them, I intend to take action. You want them hurt, right? I can't break the law but I intend to make sure they feel some pain for what they've done to you and to us. I'm going to fire Bradley immediately, with no severance, no recommendation and since his 401K isn't fully vested, he walks away without any of the company's contributions to the account. I'm also going to file a complaint with the bar association's ethics board. With that on his record, he'll have a tough time getting a job with a reputable firm."

"I'm also going to demote Karen back down to the steno pool," he said. "But I won't do it until after your divorce is settled in court. For now I'm going to give her a two week suspension to make it look good," he said. "And there will be a report filed in her employment record too."

"All you're giving her is a slap on the wrist!" I said loudly.

"No Danny," he said smiling. "Everything I'm doing is totally legal and in your best interest. If I fire Karen, you'll have to pay her more in alimony. If I wait until this is over and she's demoted or for her year-end review, it won't impact your divorce settlement at all." I nodded my head. I didn't really like the thought of Karen homeless or helpless, but she deserved to suffer at least a little for what she had done.

Filling out the stack of papers took longer than I thought. By the time I left the building it was early afternoon. Just as I got into my Mustang and put on my seat belt, someone tapped at my window. I looked up and saw one of the security guards. I let the window down.

"Hey Danny, sorry about stopping you back there," he said. "It's our job. But Dude, I know now you felt. I wish I'd done things your way, when I caught my ex. Anyway, here..." He handed me a slip of paper.

"If you get over there now, it might be worth your while," he said winking.

He'd given me the name and address of the hospital they had taken Brad to for treatment. I decided to stop by and see how old Brad was doing.

I went up to the desk and gave Brad's name. The woman didn't want to give me any information about him.

"Are you a friend or family?" she asked. "You don't look like him or any of the members of his family. I can't give out any information to friends."

"I came from the law firm he works for," I said. "If you don't need me to talk to him about his injuries, it's fine with me. The guy is an asshole anyway. I don't think we should have to pay for his care after what he did."

I hadn't actually lied, really. I never said I worked for the law firm. I never said I was a lawyer. I said that I came from there. I also never said that I could authorize his payments. I just said that I didn't think they should have to pay for his care.

But it worked. Her mouth dropped open. "Sorry, sir, I didn't know who you were. He's in room 213," she said. "Um, what did he do exactly that got him brought here? I need patient history for my records and no one has told us anything."

"Can we keep this off the record?" I said. She quickly nodded and looked around to make sure no one was listening.

"The bastard was screwing a married woman. He destroyed two families, including his own. The woman's husband showed up at the office and beat the cowboy shit out of Brad right in the office. There are going to be divorces over this and it's going to get messy." Her eyes were as big as dinner plates and for some reason she started smiling.

"What a bastard," she said. "His wife is up there with him. She's, such a nice lady. She showed me pictures of their kids."

"Remember, this is off the record," I said. "Keep this between you and me." She nodded and as soon as I walked away from her she picked up the phone. I knew her type. Before I got to the second floor every nurse there would already know what poor old Bradley had done to get his ass whipped.

When I got to the area outside of Brad's room an officious looking woman handed me a piece of paper to sign.

"Here's your HR 107 J form," she said as if I knew what the fuck that was. "We already had him sign a copy giving us the right to discuss his injuries and treatment with you."

"I need to hear it from him," I said.

"Of course," she said. "But you know that the patients don't really understand the reasons for the charges. So I'll just tell you. He has a huge laceration on his head that we had to stitch up. As he gets older and his hairline recedes he may need plastic surgery to make it less visible and..."

"We're not paying for plastic surgery," I spat. "If it happens later he may not be employed by our firm so..."

"I figured as much," she said crossing off something on her list. "How did he get that one?"

"A guy slammed a telephone into his head," I said. She laughed.

"He has a mild concussion and Tinnitus," she said. Then she looked at me. "Tinnitus is ringing in the ears."

"Yeah, I've heard that a time or two," I said. "It's kind of funny. The guy clocked him in the head with a phone and now he gets to hear a ring tone all day long."

"He has several fractured ribs, a broken nose, a split lip and two severely bruised testicles," she said. "He'll probably be here for a couple of weeks..." Her voice trailed off as she saw me shaking my head.

"We aren't paying for any lengthy hospital stays," I said. "None of those injuries are life-threatening. Wrap him, give him instructions for follow up care and send him home."

"What about his ribs, and the concussion?" she asked.

"He's married. Have his wife watch him. If anything suspicious happens she can call an ambulance. Welcome to healthcare reform," I said.

I stepped into the room and saw Brad. There were several people in the room, including a short, chunky dark haired woman with the most soulful eyes I had ever seen. Everything about her spoke of intelligence and elegance. The nurse gestured for everyone to leave the room as I walked in.

I stepped over to Brad's bed and his heart rate went up immediately.

"Relax, Brad," I said in a tone that only he could hear. "I'm here to apologize. I was upset. I let my emotions guide my actions and lost control. I promise you that I will never touch you again. I hope that you can understand that I loved Karen. Losing her is killing me, but it still is no excuse for what I did. I hope the two of you are happy and after my divorce you two will never hear from me again." His heart rate shot way up this time. Even though they had numbed his face he started trying to talk.

"Nuoo!" he muttered. "Ws jus sx. Dohn wan 'er. Dohn nee dvors. Pls wait."

"Get better, Buddy!" I said loudly, tapping him several times on his broken ribs. He kicked his legs up and screamed in agony as I left the room.

"I heard that you were from the law firm," said a concerned voice. I looked down and looked into those soulful eyes.

"How did this happen to my husband?" she asked. "Was it a case of mistaken identity? I think it was someone that he got a lot of money from in a lawsuit. You guys need more security," she said. "Before this I always wondered why those big old security guards were all over the place but now I..."

"Mrs. Martin..." I said slowly.

"Call me Joyce," she said. I took her hand gently and led her to a small waiting room just off of the hallway.

"Joyce, what happened to Brad was my fault. I was here to apologize to him," I said.

"How was this, your fault? Brad said a nutcase came into the office and attacked him," she smiled. "You can't be everywhere or protect everyone."

"Joyce, I don't work for the law firm," I said. "I'm the nutcase."

She snatched her hand away from me and looked at me. "You seem more hurt than crazy," she said finally. "Why would you attack my husband?"

"I guess I'd attack anyone who slept with my wife," I said. "Or at least I would have until now. That is no longer the case, so I came down here to apologize to Brad."

Her eyes got so hard, I thought they were granite. "Wait a minute," she hissed. "You're serious? This isn't some kind of joke?"

"You saw your husband," I said. "Did it look like I was joking?"

"You should have killed him!" she spat. "No, I'm glad you didn't. I'm going to. Who is your wife?"

"Her name is Karen Boone and we..." I began.

"Karen Boone," she yelled. "Isn't she the older woman with the huge droopy boobs? He screwed her?" I nodded.

"That asshole. He was always gawking at her. I hope it was worth it. The next time he sees his kids will be at his own funeral and he'll be looking up at them through the sides of his casket..."

Tears rolled down her face. "Is there a way that I can get on touch with you?" she asked.

"Yep, just call the law firm," I said. "Lauren is handling my divorce."

She got up and walked back into Brad's hospital room. A few seconds later I heard screaming coming from the room. I don't know what she did to Brad, but as I looked around, not a single nurse moved towards the room. Obviously the story of what Brad had done had gotten around and no one was in a hurry to help him.

* * * * * *

Karen

I stood there in shock. I think my daughter was trying to talk to me but it simply didn't register. I was having trouble wrapping my mind around the fact that my husband had a girl friend. I mean, I'm his girlfriend. I'm his only girlfriend.

Even more perplexing was the fact that she had been the one who'd invited me, not Danny. And she somehow had my Grandkids calling her Grandma.

I looked at her. Who the hell did she think she was fooling? She had that wet blond hair thing going for her. And I had to admit that she was pretty. But so was I when I was her age. Her body probably sucked. Or it probably wasn't as good as mine. That was why she was wearing that long cover-up.

Suddenly it all made sense. I almost hadn't recognized it. I was still in control. And that was the problem from her perspective. She was in the same position as some of those tramps that Brad had dated before he ran back to Joyce with his tail between his legs.

Some of those tramps had tried pretty hard to replace Joyce in his heart and his bed but they all fell short. The ones who were the most serious about him always tried to work themselves into his life. That was what this woman was trying to do.

And that was why she invited me here. She wanted to give Danny the chance to see us both so he could compare us. She was about to lose.

Debbie was finally able to take me over to her and introduce me. I hated the bitch on sight. Her skin was so God damned smooth. She did have a few wrinkles in the corners of her eyes, but they actually looked good on her. And judging from her eyebrows and the wispy hair on her arms, she came by her hair color honestly. More importantly though her boobs were not even average size, let alone in my league.

She was talking to me. Why the hell was she talking to me? That fake nice routine would never work with me. Before I could answer her, my grandchildren, Tony and Helen ran up to us, followed by two other children about the same age.

"Grandma, we want to go out on the boat," said Helen, who was acting as the spokesperson. "I'll get your Grandpa to take you as soon as he's done showing your dad his new car," she said. Helen wrapped her arms around the woman and hugged her. I had to admit that I was jealous.

"How about some lunch while you wait," she said. All four kids started cheering. She walked out to the deck and the four kids followed her.

"Okay, let's get this party started," said Debbie. "Since the men are busy, I'll light the grill. What are we making for lunch?"

"I stopped and got them McDonald's when you texted me that you'd be here soon," said Selena. The kids screamed even louder. I had to admit the bitch was good with the kids. She had actually stolen my Grandkids from me. They didn't even register my presence with her around.

"Mom, why don't you come out onto the deck and keep me company while I start the grill?" asked Debbie. "You look like you could use some sun."

It was a great idea. When Danny came out of the garage, he'd have to see me. I went into the house to change. I was again shocked. If the changes in the outside of the house had surprised me, the interior had me floored. During the time that I'd been married to him, Danny and I used the lake house as kind of a "once or twice during the summer," place. There had been minimal furniture and very little in the way of creature comforts. It had been kind of a "barely above rustic," retreat.

As I looked around now, I almost didn't recognize it. It was a home, in every sense of the word. The inside of the house had been renovated and repainted. There was a fireplace in the living room that I really didn't remember. The kitchen had a full set of appliances, beautiful dishes and pots and pans. There was a small breakfast table tucked into a corner of the breakfast nook. And I could just imagine us having a snack there while cuddling and staring out the window at the snow in winter.

There was a huge dining room set. The china cabinet had a large collection of beautiful glasses and dishes. I peeped into the den. We used to store camping hear there. The entire room had been turned into some sort of multi-media cocoon. There was a huge TV that dominated a wall. There were four leather theater seats that reclined directly in front of it. There was a comfy over stuffed sofa along one wall and a leather love seat along the other.

I imagined Danny and me lying on that sofa watching a very romantic movie and then turning it off halfway through to make love. I could also imagine myself dragging plate after plate of wings and pizza in for him and his friends while they watched the Super bowl on that huge TV. When the last of his drunken friends had left he would take the platter from my hands and bend me over that sofa and fuck the shit out of me. I could just feel my boobs swinging as he pounded me doggy style.

Then I noticed the toys scattered around the room and the video game controllers. There were speakers all around the room and an area along one side where the carpet stopped and there was a beautiful wood floor surface that mimicked the parquet surfaces throughout the rest of the house. I imagined that someone liked to dance. Again I could imagine soft music playing from those speakers and Danny and me, languidly gliding about lost in each other's arms.

All of these changes in the house had taken time. This was no over-night transformation. I walked slowly up the stairs and looked into the bedrooms. They too were fully furnished. Even the bathrooms were comfortable and well done.

"Mom, are you okay?" asked Debbie. I had paused on the stairway on my way back down. She had found me when I was lost in thoughts.

"I...I was looking for a place to change into my suit," I said.

"I guess the place is different isn't it?" she asked. "If I hadn't seen her do it myself, I probably wouldn't have believed it. She changed this old shack into something special didn't she? Anyway why don't you use our room to change in? It's the last one on the left. I'll see you out on the deck."

"Okay, I just got lost," I said.

"Mom, Selena won't mind you, looking around. She's all about family and comfort. That's what she did to this place. She wants everyone to be comfortable. She's always telling me to enjoy this place because in a very short span of years it will belong to me and the kids."

I didn't understand that at all. Was she trying to bribe my daughter with the possibility of having her dad's lake house? The more I heard the less I liked her. She was obviously much worse than the women Brad had dated. I knew then that it was my mission to free my husband from her. And I had to give it everything.

I went into the bedroom. I changed into the suit I called the whore suit. I put on a robe over it and went back down the stairs. I sat on a nice lounge chair and watched my daughter puttering at the grill. I heard the sound of a powerful engine starting up and watched as Danny backed his new Mustang out of the garage.

He got out of the car and started grabbing buckets and the hose. While Greg spoke to him. Greg was holding a bottle of beer in one hand and scratching his head with the other. Selena stopped doing whatever it was that she was doing that had the four kids giggling.

"Honey," she called. My fucking husband looked at her and then walked over. He still had a microfiber wash cloth in his hand.

"Danny you washed your car yesterday," she said. He pouted.

"Greg wants to see how I get my rims so shiny!" he said.

"Give him a bottle of the Turtle Wax Chrome polish and tell him how you do it," she said. "Your kids and your Grandkids want to go out on the boat."

His kids! What the fuck was going on here? Danny's only child is an adult and Debbie has kids of her own. Greg came over and Danny told him they were going it on the boat and he could drive.

I stood up and dropped my robe and all hell broke loose. Greg almost choked on his beer. It let me know that my boobs were still capable of drawing attention to me. I looked over at Danny and smiled. His reaction wasn't what I expected. He looked through me as if he didn't even notice me.