6
The first thing Mark did when he got back
from his “business trip” was to make me a
bowl of soup.
I took the soup, smiling, and asked,
“You free this afternoon? Wanna go
shopping?”
Mark stuttered and hemmed for a bit, but
when I mentioned buying him a car, he
reluctantly agreed.
We ran into Brenda at a fancy shoe store.
<
The clerk greeted me like I was royalty, which
startled Brenda as she was trying on shoes.
“Mark and Heidi, huh?”
Mark tried to make a run for it, but I grabbed
his arm, hooking it tightly around mine so he
couldn’t move.
“Yeah, Brenda, buying shoes?”
The clerk muttered, “She’s been here all day,
hasn’t bought a thing.”
Brenda’s face turned red.
く
“Oh, I almost forgot that Brenda doesn’t have
a real job, she’s been relying on Mark for
everything!”
Mark started to say something, but I shut him
down with a glare. This time, he was smart
enough to shut his mouth.
Brenda shot Mark a watery–eyed look, playing
the victim.
I turned the knife, waving to the store
employee.
“Brenda’s not buying anything, so I will. Wrap up every size of this shoe and send it to my
<
address.”
Brenda’s jaw clenched. She was clearly
humiliated.
“Wait up!”
A man in a dark suit stepped in front of
Brenda.
Brenda was confused. She didn’t recognize
him.
“Ma’am, do you have a feud with this woman?
You’re humiliating her in public!”
I decided to let the man win.
L
I nodded, then turned to the clerk.
“Please wrap up her size.”
The man grabbed the shoes and gave them to
Brenda, who paused for a moment.
She was already falling for his charms, and
his heroics.
She walked off triumphantly on the man’s arm, and gave me a look before walking off.
Mark stood still, mouth opened, and didn’t
say a word.
<
Mark was making more soup, once a day,
then twice a day.
I knew he was nervous.
I sat down for dinner and said:
“Brenda’s new man is really successful, I saw him drive a Rolls Royce to pick Brenda up, I
think they’re going to be getting married
soon!”
Mark’s hand clenched under the table, he
didn’t like that at all.
く
My private investigator told me that Brenda
wasn’t allowing Mark into her house.
She was on top of the world. She was going
to get married.
She didn’t want to cause trouble so she told
him to stay away.
The two of them started fighting.
Mark asked:
“You said you didn’t want to get married
again?”
Brenda said:
く
“You’re married now, so I am at peace. I’m
not stopping you from getting married.”
Mark: “But I wanted you to be here.”
Brenda said, “You said you’d be happy if I
was happy. Relax, once Heidi is gone, I’ll see
you again.”
Mark wrote his feelings all over his face.
I knew that he wasn’t feeling too good, even though he acted like he was okay.
He asked me to eat soup.
<
“Wife, please drink more soup. Let’s have a
child next year.”
I nodded and acted like I was sad.
If I hadn’t read his diary, I would’ve believed
him.
