*****
Well, no matter how much you wish to put off an unpleasant situation, it still stinks unless you dispose of it. I decided the best time was the first day I got back home. As soon as the well-wishers had left and we were alone from my recliner in front of the TV I called, “Pat! Can you come in here a minute?”
She came, but she looked like she wished she was someplace–make that anyplace–else.
“Yeah?” Her voice had a catch in it and she cleared her throat. “What’s up?”
“What’s up? What’s up? Don’t you think we need to sit down and have a talk?” I patted the chair that sat so close to my recliner we often held hand while watching TV. She nodded and letting out a long sigh she came to me, much like I pictured an old west bank robber climbing the gallows in Dodge City.
“Al, I’m so sorry…” I stopped her before she began.
“Just hold it Pat, I’ll give you chance to talk in a minute. You see, Boone is an old friend of mine and he told me what you did–how you saved my ass from a big lawsuit by that asshole Jamison. You didn’t have to do that, and I want you to know I appreciate it. Right now I only want to know one thing; do you want to stay married to me?”
“With all my heart.” Tears dripping down her cheeks. “I promise that if you forgive me I’ll never do anything like that again.”
“That’s good enough for me–except for one little thing.” I handed her an official looking envelope I’d had our lawyer bring over before I left the Hospital.. “That’s what they call a post nuptial or some crap like that. Simply put, it says if either of us are ever caught cheating after we both sign this thing, the cheating partner gets Fifty Thousand dollars and their personal belongings. Everything else, even what they may have brought into the marriage is forfeit. Sign it and we’ll never mention this incident again, refuse and we can fight it out in court.”
Pat let out a squeal and almost jumped into my lap. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” she managed to say while trying to smother me with kisses.
Epilogue
Well, that’s the way it happened. All that was years ago; since then we’ve faded into old age gracefully and I’ve thanked God many times, as I’ve aged into an octogenarian and needed help and care, that I had my sixty something year old wife at my side.
Did we have fights? Damn right we did, but we never went to bed still mad. I love that woman and I don’t give a damn what others may think. A while back, at my birthday party thrown by some old friends one of them started teasing me about what I thought I could do with a hot younger woman like Pat.
“I’ll tell you sucker,” I replied, licking the tip of my nose with my tongue. “This still works.” Then lifting my right hand with forefinger extended,. I said, “And this gets just as hard as it ever did.”
THE END
May all of you have a good day and get to find out ways to make do at eighty.
LIFE’S A BLAST!