The next morning I woke up early after a night of little sleep. I immersed myself in work on the computer until I heard the children waking up and then I went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast. After the meal I said goodbye to Claire when she left for work.
She approached me for a hug and a kiss but I responded with a half playful embrace encouraging her to leave quickly. At that moment I sensed she might have had an inkling of what awaited her. As I closed the door behind her tears welled up in her eyes and she whispered. I love you.
After her departure profound sadness washed over me and I felt an urge to release my tears. Yet I quickly composed myself as the children required my attention and I needed to prepare them for the school bus. Around ten forty five a.m. the phone rang disrupting our morning routine displaying Claire's workplace on the caller ID.
I answered the call without uttering a word and there was a brief pause as the caller realized I wasn't inclined to engage in conversation. In a trembling voice and a whisper Claire said. I'm sorry. Shortly after the line fell silent and I remained silent as well.
Claire didn't return home that night and I wondered if she continued her deceitful game. Seemingly indifferent to her husband. While I recognized my anger was justified I also considered that I might have been overly harsh on her. The children disheartened by their mother's absence wondered where she was.
To uplift their spirits I invited them to have dinner at a McDonald's cafe. By the time we returned home after dinner the kids were exhausted and went straight to bed. The next morning Claire called with a request.
Honey can I come home and pack my things. Can we talk. Initially a sense of guilt welled up within me but it quickly dissipated. I replied calmly. Why don't you come between nine and noon as I continued.
Then the kids and I won't be here. Regarding our conversation I made it clear that I'd speak with her one on one in my lawyer's office only after she signed notarized and returned the divorce documents. Then I'll listen to whatever you have to say.
There was a sob on the line before Claire answered. Good. Shortly after the phone fell silent again. She signed the divorce papers and six months later our marriage officially came to an end.
It turned out that she became pregnant during the affair. Unfortunately when she attempted to conceal it from her last lover contraception failed. Considering it was near the childbearing age even if I hadn't found out about her infidelity through the lost rings the truth would probably have come out eventually.
There were rumors that she had started dating again. If she ever gets close to getting married again I've thought about honestly warning her future spouse about her unfaithfulness. It seems unnecessary for her to deceive and hurt another person.
We had a meeting and during our conversation in my lawyer's office I shared my thoughts with her. She pleaded with me to reconsider the divorce decision. She talked about how difficult it was for her not to have unrestricted access to our children.
However I explained that I couldn't trust her anymore. Then she mentioned that she had seen a psychologist who diagnosed her with nymphomania. She assured me that her impulses were now under control. Despite her explanations I told her that it wasn't enough for me.
Even if she claimed to have her urges in check the fact that she hadn't sought help earlier indicated a lack of proactive effort on her part. If she had addressed her cravings from the beginning she might not have found herself in the current situation.
When I left the lawyer's office she continued to cry. Having recently reconnected with a school friend who keeps me updated I learned that he works at a nightclub. He mentioned seeing my ex-wife at the club where he works on several weekend nights.
She frequents the club with different men and behaves provocatively. I was deeply hurt that my children have such an irresponsible mother. Perhaps my ex-wife never recovered from nymphomania.
A friend of Claire's also called me and informed me that Claire was in poor health. She said my ex-wife needed my assistance because she had contracted herpes. Meanwhile she continued her promiscuous lifestyle.
I sympathized with her but conveyed that I couldn't offer any help nor did I want to. Claire chose this lifestyle and its associated health issues. I began dating again and it seems I found someone special.
This woman around my age and divorced herself discovered her ex-husband's infidelity and didn't tolerate such behavior. She possesses strength and resilience qualities I genuinely admire. It seems that my children also like her.
I believe this is a natural progression and it's only a matter of time before I consider taking our relationship to a new level.