My wife had to go overseas for her company. She would be gone for three weeks. The day she left, my baby sitter got in a bad accident and had to quit. I was fully capable of caring for my two-year-old daughter but it could not have come at a worse time. I could not spare myself from my company.
I don't know how my mother-in-law found out. Maybe the baby sitter called Sheila, and Sheila called Mom. But there was my mother-in-law on the phone. "Bruce, I am leaving now so I will be there tonight by nine or ten. I hope you can help me in with my belongings."
"Oh my God that is wonderful Mom! You are a life saver. How long can you stay?"
"Bruce, I have nothing keeping me here. I can stay as long as you want."
"Dad needs you."
"Let the bastard hire a housekeeper!"
I was not ready for that. I thought my in-laws had a good, solid marriage; a lot stronger than mine. They were in their mid forties and they had been together since high school. They had raised three daughters; my wife was the middle child. I started to say something but changed my mind. We would have three weeks if she wanted to share and I would not pry if she did not. Maybe I needed to start calling her Karen if there was going to be an actual split. In any case, she was a life saver. I was really thankful to her.
At almost 10PM Mom arrived pulling a U-Haul trailer. WOW! Three weeks should be three or four suitcases, not a trailer full. She had what she needed right away in the car so we put off unloading the trailer until morning. What would not fit in the spare room could go in the garage tomorrow. But I wondered about the large load. I wondered why Dad was a bastard. Was she planning to stay? I was okay with her staying if that was her plan. I always liked Karen. In fact Karen had a sexier body, prettier face and better personality than any of her daughters. She was more of a girlie girl and had a bounce in her step. And her little ass had a nice sway.
When we finished the unloading for the evening, I said, "Coffee, tea, hot chocolate, wine or anything I can pick up at a convenience store? Most other things are closed now."
"Wine would be wonderful Bruce."
As I got the wine and some snacks, she jumped in right away. She had been a home maker for over half of her life so it was her "Mom" instinct. We put everything on the coffee table in front of the sofa.
"Bruce, we have a lot to talk about but not tonight."
"Take all the time you want Karen. I am just happy that you are here. You were always my favorite Mother-in-law and I love hanging out with you." I was thinking, and looking at her and fantasizing. I always dreamed of fucking her but I never took the risk of letting her know. Now I had three weeks to drop tiny hints and see if she reciprocated.
"You are by far my favorite son-in-law Bruce and unlike you, I have more than one."
I wondered if I would still be her favorite if she knew that I could not look at her without fucking her in my mind. Well, maybe I better just behave for three weeks.
As we settled into our cheese and crackers, we made a toast with the wine. This was my very first time drinking alone with Karen and I had to remind myself not to read anything into it. I wondered about her news. She was mad at her husband and appeared to be moving in. Could there be more than that? Probably there was not any more. But I would not push her to talk about it. She would talk when she was ready.
"Do you want television, Karen?"
"Yes. I don't care what you want to watch." As we watched a mindless sitcom, she slid closer to me. Then she started crying and shaking. Maybe I am about to hear her news. Meanwhile I put my arm around her and pulled her even closer. The tighter I embraced her, the louder Karen cried.
"Hey, Karen, I don't want to make it worse."
"Not your fault at all. You are my hero. If I was twenty years younger and you weren't my daughter's husband, I would fuck your brains out. Wow, I bet you never heard me talk like that before. Sorry Bruce. Wash my mouth out with soap if you think I need it."
"As for you being twenty years younger, forget it. You are one of the most beautiful, sexy, and desirable women I have ever known. I have thought so for as long as I have known you."
"Thanks Bruce, I need somebody to lie to me right now. Your bastard ex-father-in-law has been cheating on me for a long time but I was too stupid to see the signs. When he couldn't get it up, I thought he had a medical problem. I never suspected that he was all fucked out with his bimbo! When he had to work late three or four nights a week, I was proud of him for working so hard. Why was I so blind and trusting? I was so stupid."
"He is the stupid one Karen. He has lost you and will never find one as good. He is the big loser and all because of male curiosity!"
"You are great for my ego but I am just a middle aged lady that could not hold on to her man."
"And he was too stupid to appreciate what he had. Let's go make some more snacks." Now I had two strong feelings. I still craved her but I wanted to dry her tears too. I wanted to be her friend that would give her the space she needed and be there for her if she wanted to talk about it. I wanted to be there for her if she wanted to fuck too but any sudden advances might scare her away forever.
There was little in the house for snacks so I drove to a convenience store and stocked up. My lousy marriage was heavy on my mind as I drove. Maybe there would be a right time to tell Karen or maybe Sheila would open up to her. Maybe Karen had enough problems without hearing mine. I had married Sheila because she was pregnant with my daughter. But I was not the only guy fucking her back then. As her company trips became more frequent, I had my secretary call her company and ask to talk to her. She was connected with Sheila right away. That accounted for her international business trips including that alleged trip to Belgium. I was going to hire a detective to see where she stayed on these "trips", but my daughter was only two and needed a Mommy and Daddy; not detectives and DNA.
When I arrived back home, Karen had changed to a heavy robe and was crying so loud that I heard her as soon as I entered the front door.
"Oh Bruce, you have four big bags of junk food? When will we eat all that?"
Again, she helped serve to the coffee table and we were snacking and watching television again. I thought about the betrayal we had both suffered. I thought about Karen's sadness and wanted to make it go away. I wished we could console each other. Then she started holding me tight and her crying was out of control.
"Bruce, I am not crying for that bastard. I am crying because I have wasted over half my life."
"You raised three daughters."
"Your two sister-in-laws are sluts. They both cheat on their husbands."
That is when I slipped and said, "I guess it is all three of your daughters."
"What? You mean Sheila too! I guess they have their father's genes."
