Anatomy of a Marriage Ch. 15

After the conversation with the lawyer, Marsha spent a couple of sleepless nights, thinking about what she had been told. She felt reassured that if things went as they should with Trenton’s rehab treatment, and he was able to go back as a partner in good standing, she would likely have legal grounds for full support. She decided when she spoke to Trenton again, she would bring up the subject of a legal separation. She was nervous about broaching the subject, because if Trenton was in a serious relationship, he might ask for a divorce instead. She tried to steel herself to handle however he might react.

When they had last talked, Trenton had hung up quickly when he hadn’t had a ready answer for one of the questions she’d asked. Thus far, he had failed to call back as he had promised. Finally, she worked up the nerve to call the treatment center herself. When she asked if she could speak to him, she was surprised at how quickly they were able to locate him. When he came on the line, he acted as if it was a cordial phone call.

“Hey Babe. What is going on?  Are you and the kids alright?”

“We’re fine. Nothing I can’t handle. I thought you said you would call me back. I was asking you about some concerns I had when you told me you had to get off the phone.”

“They keep us so busy around here. You’re lucky you caught me today. It looks like I’m going to be here two more weeks.”

“I was hoping to finish our conversation. I was asking about some things that made me feel you were having an affair.”

“I don’t know what has gotten into you to make you so suspicious all of a sudden. You’ve trusted me all these years. This isn’t like you. Are you having some kind of mid-life crisis?”

“Don’t go making it look like this is my fault. Things have been going sour for a while. I’ve wanted to trust you, but maybe I’ve just now gotten my eyes open. How do you think I feel with you staying out until four in the morning? Are you trying to tell me you’ve never been with another woman?”

“I’ll admit I was drinking too much. Those nights I didn’t come right home when the bars closed was because I tried to be responsible and not drive. I couldn’t afford to get a DUI. Sometimes, I’d nap in the car until I knew I could drive safely.  All that is behind me, now. I’ll try to be more responsible.”

“Look, that isn’t all. Joey showed me a house a couple of blocks from here where he said he saw you with some woman.”

“So now you’re trying to turn the kids against me, are you? Why would he say that? I don’t’ know what he’s talking about. If I was going to have an affair, I wouldn’t be stupid enough to have one with a neighbor. Maybe, it was one of the office girls I gave a ride home when she had a flat tire.”

“Also, I found receipts in your coat pocket for expensive jewelry and lingerie. It wasn’t something you bought for me.”

“What you saw was probably something I picked up for one of the guys at the firm. I’m sure he paid me back. What are you doing rummaging around looking for stuff in my pockets? I don’t go digging in your purse. This is unreal.”

“For your information, you asked me to send those clothes to the cleaner. Any sensible person would make sure there is nothing in the pockets before sending something out to be cleaned.”

“Well, there you go. That proves I wasn’t trying to hide anything. I wouldn’t leave something like that in a pocket if I was trying to hide it.”

“Look Trenton, you have all these glib answers for everything. I’m sorry, but I’m having trouble accepting everything you say. I have to have some time to build back my trust. You need to prove to me you can be trusted and that you aren’t going to be drinking every night. When you get out of rehab, you don’t need to come back home right away. Why don’t we take a break and maybe do a legal separation for a few months. We need to talk to a therapist and work on trying to get our marriage back where it once was.”

“Marsha, are you serious?  You don’t want me to come home? I’ve done everything for you. You’re the one that picked out the house we bought. You chose every stick of furniture in it. I’ve provided a good life for you. You do whatever you want to. Am I not keeping you satisfied? You seem to enjoy our love life.”

“When was the last time we had a ‘love life’? You’re never home. Trenton, I talked to a lawyer. He said we could easily get a legal separation. It wouldn’t have to be permanent. We need a fresh start. We can do things together like we did back when we were dating. You can afford an apartment for a little while. I still love you and want things to work out. I just can’t handle things the way they were going.”

“I can’t believe you actually talked to a lawyer. Why would you do something like that? Who did you talk to? We don’t need to go paying a lawyer. I happen to be capable of handling anything legal, in case you’ve forgotten.”

“All I’m asking is for you to think about it. Things aren’t going back the way they were. I’ve said enough for now. The lawyer I talked to is a friend of Carman’s. He doesn’t know you. We need to make some kind of legal arrangement before you get out of rehab. Give it some thought and get back to me. I really want what is best for you, but I have to think about myself and the kids. I want things to work between us. I’m going to hang up now. You call me back when you’re ready to talk about it.”

When Marsha got off the phone, she felt drained and could only imagine what Trenton might be thinking.  He didn’t appear to want out of the marriage. Maybe one woman wasn’t enough for him. He seemed to think he could maintain a respectable family life, while she stayed blissfully ignorant and allowed him to play the field. This wasn’t something she’d made up in her mind. He was lying to her. There was too much evidence to ignore.

 She could never afford to be so naïve again. That ship had sailed.