Temptation Pt. 03

"I'm going to move into the extra bedroom, for now, but we won't tell Lilia. I have to think about her first, and the last thing I want is that little angel worried about her parents. I'm going to devote myself to two things, her and destroying Kendra. I dumped her for a reason, years ago, but never thought in a million years I would see her again."

Gary stood up and walked for the door, ignoring his wife's whimpers. He grabbed his coat and keys, causing Anna to worry that he might be leaving her.

"I have to go get our daughter. While I'm gone, make yourself presentable. She DOESN'T need to know about our problems right now, understand?"

Anna nodded and stood to go clean up. While he was away to pick up their daughter, she took a long hard look in the mirror.

'What have I done? How could I be so stupid? Why didn't I just believe him!' she thought.

Sadly, she realized she didn't have any answers to her questions, which made her all the more upset. She had a great life and family, and she had been willing to believe people she barely knew, over her own husband.

By the time he returned with Lilia, Anna had cleaned herself up and looked mostly presentable. Naturally, the little toddler ran to her mother and yelled out, "MOMMY!"

That night was challenging for both parents, trying hard to put up a good front for their child. Anna did her best to act happy, as she listened to her daughter go on and on about the books she had read. Gary had withdrawn some, but still responded when Lilia asked him questions.

After they got her to bed, they were left with a new reality. Their routines would forever be different and they had no idea how to move forward. Gary showered and decided that he would deal with it in the morning. He grabbed a blanket and his pillow to sleep in the spare bedroom. Anna began sobbing, knowing that everything was her fault. She never should have listened to anyone at her office, and was now facing a very grim future.

They stumbled through their morning routine. Anna called the office and told them she was staying home sick, while Gary took a drive. Before going home, he felt he needed to really think. He needed more facts about what had all been said and done, as well as a plan for what he was going to do with his wife.

Did he want to divorce her? Could they even go back to the way things were before this all started? Did he want to? Would he ever be able to trust her again? The questions circled his head until he couldn't take it any longer. He decided he needed some advice, but didn't know who to turn to.

He ended up asking his father to meet with him somewhere and talk. His dad met him at a nearby Denny's so they could talk while having some coffee and brunch. They asked for some coffee and a couple mugs. The waitress left menus with them in case they were hungry.

"Son, you look like death warmed over."

"Kinda how I feel, pops..."

"Well you didn't invite me here to chat about the weather, so why don't you tell me what's bothering you. Are things still rough with Anna?"

Gary poured himself a mug, added some sugar and the cheap creamer, and stirred it. He stared at the spoon as he stirred, wondering where to begin. That truly was the question he had been asking himself, where did it all start to go wrong?

"Dad," he looked up into his father's face, "Anna and I are having serious problems. I don't really know where to start, and I'm not sure if we can get through it."

"Garrison, you have always been a very thoughtful, but strong willed, man. You will survive whatever it is, I know you will. Now, why don't you just start at the beginning?"

Gary sighed, and then began. "I already told you guys, that Anna had been accusing me of cheating on her. Well, the situation is much worse than I thought. Not only did I never cheat on her, but I just found out that she did..." he choked up and couldn't continue after that.

His dad just nodded, understanding. "Go on, son. I'm here for you."

Gary cleared his throat, and went on. "On top of that, my crazy ex-girlfriend Kendra seems to be behind most of what's been going wrong lately. She was telling Anna lies, she tried to set me up with a girl at the gym, and she paid this asshole at their firm to seduce my wife. I'm so damn confused and mad that I don't know what to do. She cheated on me! How could she?"

"Are you sure?" his father asked him sadly.

Gary nodded, "Yeah, Kendra somehow made sure I got a video of it. Every time I shut my eyes, all I can see is that guy with her up on her desk..." He shuddered involuntarily.

"Gary, you need to find out who's telling the truth and then figure out what you want to do. You have a little girl to think about, too. I'm not suggesting that you forgive Anna just because you guys have a kid, but you have to remember that whatever actions you take will affect her too."

Gary realized that his dad was telling him what he already knew. He was glad for the support though.

"I know that. I just can't believe this is happening. One minute, I feel on top of the world. I have a wife I love more than anything, a daughter that gives me pure joy and a great career. The next minute, everything is falling apart faster than I can blink."

Gary's dad just sat, sipping his coffee. He knew that his son would have some tough choices to make, and didn't envy him at all.

"I'll send your mom over later to check on you, and maybe she can bring you some pie, okay?"

"That'd be nice. Thanks for listening, Dad."

"Anytime, son. Whatever you decide, your mother and I will support you, one-hundred percent."

With that, he gave his dad a hug and parted company. He drove home thinking all about how he could possibly exact any kind of revenge on Kendra, and that asshole that she had paid to fuck his wife. He nearly had to pull over and throw up, thinking about it again.

When he got there, Lilia was making a drawing while Anna sat behind her, sipping some coffee. On the surface, they looked just like the happy family they used to be. When Anna looked back at her husband, it was one of the saddest looks they had ever exchanged.

He looked away and walked into the kitchen. He held onto the counter for support, wondering how he was going to make it another day, let alone the next few hours. He calmed himself, for the sake of his daughter.

He joined them in the living room and even smiled at his little girl when she held up her completed drawing. It was a picture of the three of them, her in the middle holding each of her parent's hands. Of course, the people in the picture were stick figures, but to him, it was better than the Mona Lisa.

He held it together and gave her a huge hug, laughing when she tickled her big tough daddy. Lilia took the picture and ran into the kitchen with it, hanging it on the side of the refrigerator with some spare magnets. Anna looked to Gary with hope, but the most he could do was shrug and not scowl at her.

The day progressed, but he wasn't sure how. Gary's mom did come by, with a freshly baked apple pie, his favorite. Martha played with Lilia in their living room, and was thankful that the innocent little girl couldn't understand the real problem with her parents. The poor little toddler just knew that something was wrong between her Mommy and Daddy.

Gary went to put Lilia down for an afternoon nap, and while he was out of the room, Martha sat with a very scared Anna. Gary's mom gave Anna a very disapproving look.

"Anna, you're a very bright woman. How on earth did you manage to make such a mess of things? Dan and I are very disappointed in you."

Anna was near tears, but managed to hold it in. She knew that Dan and Martha thought of her as their actual daughter, just as she considered them her parents, having lost her own. Their disappointment was nearly as tough on her as how badly she had hurt Gary.

"Mom, oh god... I DON'T KNOW! I'm such an idiot." Anna started to lose control at this point, sniffling between every other word. "You're right. I've made... such a huge... mess, haven't I? I wish I could blame it all on someone else, but I can't," she stated, sniffling again as she finished.

Martha patted her on the back, as she cried into her arms on the table. "There, there. Anna, you are a very strong woman and will recover from this. I hope that you and Gary can work things out, if not for each other, then for Lilia's sake. Please understand though, we will stand by whatever Gary decides."

A still very tearful Anna simply nodded her understanding. Her mother-in-law leaned over and hugged her against the table, just as Gary came in from the hallway. He saw his mom and Anna, and felt for his wife, until he got the mental image of her on that desk again. His expression got screwed up in a scowl as he continued on toward the fridge.

After grabbing a beer, Gary turned and walked out onto the back porch, sitting on one of their patio chairs. He stared out into the yard and beyond. He didn't even truly taste the beer but drank it anyhow. His mother joined him before leaving, checking on him.

"Gary, honey, mind if I sit here with you?" she asked.

Gary barely looked over in her direction, before nodding his approval. She knew that he was not acting like himself when he didn't immediately start talking to her about Lilia or Anna. Those two were his whole world, and it broke Martha's heart to see her son so sad.

"I know you don't want to believe this, but eventually, it will get better. Time will pass and your lovely daughter will grow up. Your father and I will eventually be gone, and hopefully you will have some grandkids to spoil, just like we are going to with Lilia." Martha was smirking when Gary looked over at her.

"Thanks, Mom. I know life will go on, but right now it's so hard to even think about the next few days, let alone the next thirty years. I have no idea what I'm going to do about this..." his voice trailed off.

She nodded, half-smiling at her son. "Fair enough, Gary. Whatever you choose will be the right decision, I'm sure of it. No matter what happens, just know that your father and I will ALWAYS be here for you. Got it?"

"Got it, Mom."

With that, Martha snuck in a kiss goodbye on Lilia's forehead. She gave Gary and Anna each a hug as she left, reminding them both to call her if they needed anything.

After dinner, Gary wanted to get so drunk that he wouldn't remember anything. The only thing that kept him from running down to a bar was Lilia. That night, she made him sit with her and read a bedtime story to her. He loved to read to his little angel anyhow, so he did it gladly.

Once she was tucked in, he went out to the living room. Anna was sitting with a bottle of wine and two glasses on the coffee table, looking at him hopefully. He had no desire to get cozy with her, but he also felt like he needed to unwind.

He sat in the chair across from her and took the glass. As he held it, she poured the wine for him and then her own glass. They sipped it quietly, both wrestling with their own thoughts. Anna looked up at him and waited for him to look as well. When they connected eyes, she looked hopefully at him.

He couldn't give her the assurance she felt she needed. Gary felt it was time to lay the cards on the table though, and decided to just get it over with.

"Anna, I'm not sure if I will ever be able to forgive you for what you've done. We promised each other we would never cheat, not to mention the promises we made in our wedding vows."

She made like she was going to protest, but he held up his hand to silence her.

"I haven't made any decisions about us yet, so don't even start. Right now, I have two things that I am focused on. Lilia needs to know that she still has two very loving parents, and second, I need to get my revenge on Kendra. Everything else is unimportant for now, including whether I stay with you or file for divorce."

Anna dipped her head, knowing full well that anything happening now could have been avoided. Her body shook as she cried, facing a life of unbearable loneliness. This was NOT how it was supposed to be. She looked up at him and nodded, tears still running down her cheeks.

"I understand, and will help in any way that you let me. I NEED to get back at her, too."

Gary then asked her a series of questions about what she had been told, and by whom. He wrote everything down in chronological order, often asking her repeated questions to fill in blanks. Aside from that, he was also testing her to see if she would lie, or gloss over any details. Anna knew he was testing her, and again felt a huge amount of shame for ever having been so weak.

It hurt to hear the details of her having sex with Jake, but she didn't try to lie to Gary. She told him how confused she had been, and mentioned that she had been under all the stress at work, so had delegated trying to confirm his cheating to Jake and Kendra. It finally dawned on her that she had trusted the very people out to destroy her, allowing them to validate their own lies to her.

Gary hoped that she was telling the truth, but would be verifying everything with Alexia. It appeared that she had turned into a double-agent for them, confessing everything to Anna earlier. He would talk to her next.

"Am I going to need to quit my job?" she asked, wiping away the last of her tears.

He gave her a sharp look. "Probably," he said as if it was obvious, "But until then, you are on VERY thin ice. I'm not sure of anything, but right now, being around you makes me very angry," he confessed. "I will only warn you once. No more fucking around on me, or I will call a lawyer... immediately!"

Gary walked down the hall and grabbed some of his clothing, only to crawl into the guest bed and fall fast asleep. Anna wasn't so lucky, lying in their bed, all alone. She eventually cried herself to a fitful sleep...

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Part 4, 'Striking back' is next, and will be the finale for this series.

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