Free Dawson's Web by William Hutchison Page B

zero. I think he wants it that way or he is seeing someone else. I don’t know if he is or not. I only know that I need more. I’m frustrated as hell.”
    “Continue.”
    “I’m horny, Sharon. I need to be with somebody that can satisfy me and make me feel comfortable. John is not doing it for me anymore. I’ve tried. I’m giving him as much space as I can, but I can’t continue to function this way anymore. That’s why we decided to get the boat. I think that maybe it will be a place I can go away from him for a while and maybe find some fulfillment. Even though our Malibu house is wonderful and I like all of the trappings of it, I don’t feel good about inviting a stranger over. It’s creepy. At least when we get the boat squared away, I’ll have a place to go.”
    “So you’re talking about having an affair?”
    “Not only am I talking about it, but I’m also seriously considering it. That’s the only reason I agreed to buy the sailboat in the first place with him. I need to get my life in order. I need to have somebody who loves me, trusts me, and who will adore me. I’m worth it Goddamit.”
    “Everybody wants that, including me.”
    “But you have your husband. You told me you were very satisfied the last time we spoke. Have things changed?”
    “Not really but I wasn’t quite honest with you last time.”
    “What do you mean, Sharon?  What didn’t you tell me?”
    “Well, we agreed to come clean. I mean total honesty with each other. We agreed that we would be together but only if we could be one hundred percent honest with each other.  So I told him about…
    Stephanie interrupted. “You didn’t tell him about your affair with your dentist did you?”
    Sharon hesitated,”Uhh, huh.”
    “What did he say?”
    He didn’t say anything at first. He acted shocked, but inside I think he suspected something was going on. He can hide his emotions far better than most men can.”
    “Go on,” Stephanie urged. This was exciting her. She had always thought Sharon and her husband, Brad, were the perfect couple, that is, until Sharon confided in her about the dentist. But that was two years ago.
    “So what did he say?” Stephanie asked again.
    “When he finally started talking, he told me not only did he have an affair with his ex-wife, Melinda, but that it was continuing to this day. That comment floored me. I had no idea. Here I was feeling guilty for a one-night stand I had and he’d been fucking his ex-wife for the past three years. Do you know how it made me feel?”
    “I know. What an asshole. All men are assholes.”
    “You’ve got that right.”
    “So what did you decide to do about it?”
    “I was ready to run. When he told me, it hurt like hell, but when I thought about it some more, I knew I wasn’t going to do anything. I don’t have a job. He makes all the money and I’m too old to start over. Right now, it still hurts. Ours is a mutually beneficial relationship. We both know that. So he told me he was ending it with Melinda. He even let me listen in on the phone while he was telling her. It wasn’t very pretty. She took it hard. But in the end, he persisted in convincing her and me that it was finished with her. What cinched it was when he asked me to chime in and tell Melinda how I felt and that I knew about it.”
    “He put you on the phone with her? You have to be kidding. That’s unusual. Highly unusual.”
    “Yes. I got to say five words to her before she hung up.”
    “What did you say?”
    “I win again, you bitch!”
    Stephanie laughed aloud and then continued. “But I’m not sure that John would be able to understand anything if I had an affair. He’s liable to become physically abusive. I’ve seen it in him a couple of times earlier when we dated, so I know he has the capacity. I’m not even going to broach the subject with him. If I have an affair, no one will know. I won’t even tell you.”
    “Have you ever even asked him what he’d do if you were