My Husband's Girlfriend Read Free Page B

him. He’s a healthy, attractive little tyke, my mini me. I can’t abandon him.
    Now, as far as still having sex with Danielle, who knows what’s gonna happen? Could recent events inspire my wife’s sex drive so that she’s willing to do what I want when I want? After everything that’s gone down, I can’t picture Anya rushing to dive under the covers with me now. We’ll just have to wait and see how things turn out on that end. Lord knows I have too much to deal with to be worried about every single detail of mi vida loca.
             
    Two nights after my son is born, my wife and I have the house to ourselves. Vette asks if she can go hang out at a mall. I toss her the keys to my SUV and tell her to have a good time.
    “I always do,” she says, then actually thanks me for the keys, which is a shocker.
    After Vette leaves, I call Anya into our library. It’s the most peaceful room in the house. Hundreds of books line the shelves from floor to ceiling. There is no TV, or phone jack. Just quietness, escapism.
    “Have a seat,” I tell Anya.
    Her eyes are red and eyelids swollen, but I pretend not to see.
    “You look whipped,” she tells me.
    “Yeah, it’s been a tough few days.”
    “I can imagine.”
    I flinch. I know Anya isn’t being sarcastic, but sarcasm is what I hear. She could smile and say “Have a nice day” and to me it would sound like “Go fuck yourself and die.”
    “I think it’s time for us to deal with a few things here,” I tell her.
    “Mmmm.”
    “And, uh, thanks for setting up the nursery. That’s very sweet of you, Anya. I hadn’t thought of that.”
    Anya grunts. I start whistling and shuffling papers. Doing this is as uncomfortable as going through my performance evaluation at work.
    “Look, Anya, I think things may get better for us. We’re going to give it our all, right? We’ve gotten through the pregnancy, the birth, so maybe we can also get through rearing two kids.”
    Anya’s baggy eyes widen.
    “I–I don’t mean that you’re gonna be like a stepmom, I mean—I don’t even know what to call this. But I do want to be in the kid’s life. Let’s face it. Having sex and getting Dani pregnant is already a done deal.”
    Her eyes widen even more.
    “I know the situation feels awkward to all involved,” I explain calmly, “but I refuse to let my kid grow up not knowing who his daddy is. If that happens, it’s not going to be because I want it to.”
    “I know you want to be in his life, I appreciate your honesty,” Anya says. Her voice sounds gentle. I thankfully exhale. Anya’s a rare woman.
    “I realize it’s been hard on you, babe,” I remark. “You’ve gone through a lot, much more than any woman should ever have to—”
    “Every day I blame myself,” she says, her voice rising. “But you’re at fault, too. If you would’ve stuck to just eating her pussy instead of—”
    “Anya, please.” I stand up and take one step toward her. “I’m sorry, so sorry, Anya, okay? I don’t know what else to tell you except I messed up. Don’t forget how long it had been since I’d been inside of you.”
    “You’re right, Neil. Now I know it’s unrealistic to think a man can stick to just kissing a woman, letting her give you a blow job every once in a while, and leave it at that. You blew it, Neil. And it’s hard to get past that.”
    “Well, Anya, as hard as it is, for our sake you might have to. I’ll admit I’ve made mistakes, but do I really have to hear about them every single day like this? I’m scared I might do something I regret.”
    “As if there could be anything else?” Anya laughs sarcastically. I guess she thinks that’s a zinger that will put me in my place. I don’t feel like fighting her, so I pick up the day’s newspaper and read the headline out loud.
    “‘Father Brings Kids into the Basement, Shoots Them, and Commits Suicide.’ Hmm, wonder what brought that on…”
    “Neil, don’t even try it. Things between