The Affair Read Online Free Page A

don’t know. Just some weird train of thought, I guess.”
    It was like this all night. She’d gesture toward the potted azalea on the kitchen counter and say, “Your plant doesn’t look
     so hot. Anyone you can call for expert advice?” Or, “Can you recommend a good landscaper?”
    After she’d finished off the bottle of wine, she wrapped her arms around Roger’s waist and told me, “You take care of my Roger,
     you hear? If I’d had any brains I would have grabbed him when we were juniors at Penn. I was such an idiot.” Roger blushed
     and gently extracted himself from her grip. He moved to my side and muttered something lighthearted. I felt a wave of guilt
     as I contemplated his loyalty. Diana finally left at 11. I practically had to shove her out the door.
    As I loaded up the dishwasher I remembered thatnext week is the office Christmas party. Everyone’s invited, including service staff (computer tech people, the coffee lady,
     and, yes, Eddie). Significant others are also invited, but Roger hates these things so I usually go alone. Just then a song
     came on the radio, a song about a furtive kiss, the flicker of a tongue, an affair. I put another plate in the dishwasher.
    ’Til next time,

December 21
    The Christmas party was everything I’d hoped and feared it would be. Eddie and I made small talk most of the night. Diana
     trapped us by the buffet. Beer in one hand, unlit cigarette in the other. “You know that song,” she started, hooking a painted
     fingernail into my sweater. “Oh, you know that great Bonnie Raitt song. I just love her, don’t you?” My mind clicked through
     every Bonnie Raitt song I knew.
    Which one could she possibly be thinking of?
    Then I realized. Oh no. Not
that
one. “People are talking …” Diana began to sing. “That’s right, Valerie and Eddie, they’re talking about you,” she crooned,
     lounge lizard style.
    I could feel a stinging wave of heat pass through me. Eddie, on the other hand, seemed completely unruffled. He smiled and
     raised his beer. “Diana, I think you missed your calling.” She curtsied and sidled up to me. “He’s a peach, kid.” She paused
     and looked me in the eye. “But then again, you already have a peach at home, now, don’t you?”
    Some peach. Roger has said barely four words to me in over a week. We sleep back to back, without even a perfunctory good-night
     kiss. He is animated and happy when Pete is in the room, but when he’s alone with me he seems to die by degrees. Our marriage
     is in a free fall. So am I.
    It was during this gloomy contemplation that I felt a warm hand on my arm. “Meet me in the stairwell,” he said. I’d never
     seen him so serious. My heart felt like the engine on my old Mustang, racing so hard and fast I thought it might explode.
     When I got there he was sitting on the stairs. Even in my crazed state I could step back for a moment and admire him. God,
     he is sexy. And so big. Everything about him (as far as I can see) is just so deliciously big. His neck. His arms. His legs.
     All muscle. When I’m near him I just want to curl into him. Roger is so pale and slight sometimes I think I’d have to protect
     him if we ever got attacked by muggers. With Eddie, I feel so sheltered. It feels so unfamiliar and so good.
    “You look beautiful tonight.” I could feel him taking me in. “I have something for you.” He had nothing in his hands. I was
     confused. He stood up and moved close to me. He smelled of beer and Eternity. I thought I was going to pass out. He dipped
     down and put his mouth on my cheek.
    A kiss.
    “Don’t look so scared,” he said, touching a finger to my cheek. The spot that he’d kissed felt warm and moist. “We’re friends,
     right?”
    “Of course,” I answered, unsure of where he was going with this.
    “Well, friends kiss, don’t they?” he asked, smilingwryly. “It’s not like I kissed you on the lips or anything.” My lips tingled at the thought.
    He held