Chapter 3: What I Did

With a firm resolve I dialed their home phone number and thankfully his wife was the one to answer. She sounded surprised to hear me - and for that matter, why not as I was probably the last person on Earth that she ever expected to call. I didn’t say much, just asking that she meet me at a local restaurant for a few minutes to discuss something important. She didn’t even ask me why, just quickly agreeing and then hanging up without further comment. It was all so quick I was left wondering if somehow she knew right away what it was all about - or at least the subject matter.

When I arrived she was already seated and had a hot cup of black coffee before her. We formally exchanged pleasantries and then I took a seat on the opposite side of the booth. There was no small talk about the weather or anything. Instead, we got right to the subject at hand...

It wouldn’t be worth it for me to write down the entire conversation as I’m pretty sure most anyone can figure out what we said. As I suspected, she didn’t seem surprised when I told her there was something going on between me and her husband. Of course, it didn’t help when she mentioned thing like she wasn’t surprised that a “slut like you” wouldn’t honor her request to leave her husband alone and such. What could I say? Most likely I’d of been a lot less calm about it had our situations been reversed.

Mrs. Eisenberg allowed me to say pretty much what I had to say without interruption other than a few of those sharp comments that I mentioned. When I was done we just sat there for a couple of minutes, her staring at me like she was trying to decide whether to just kill me or that I was the lowest form of life she’d ever encountered - that sort of stare. Feeling a bit awkward, I just kept my mouth shut and let her take her time in responding. When she did, it was slow and deliberate.

“Ok, so here’s the deal,” she said in an icy tone, “Let me lay it out so there’s no misunderstanding this time...”

“One - This is the last time you and I will EVER discuss this - or anything else for that matter. I never want to have anything to do with someone like you ever again.”

“Two - You are to stay away from me and my family, especially my daughters. I don’t want them being associated with sluts and whores.”

“Three - if you EVER have any contact with my husband other than what is absolutely required for your job - and I mean as this school determines it, I will see to it that you are exposed for what you are - a nasty, despicable whore who chases and traps married men.”

“Last - you will find another job for next year. If you’re still teaching here next fall I will see to it that you wish you weren’t. Don’t worry, I’ll make you sure you get an outstanding recommendation from your boss.”

Then she sat leaned over and looked at me with eyes filled with what I can only describe as sheer hatred.

“You know ... the sad thing is I knew you were going to be trouble the first time I laid eyes on you. For now I’ll accept part of the blame for not stepping in sooner. Still, I don’t know how you can live with yourself being what you are - and doing what you do. My husband is a good man but he is weak. I can’t believe he would’ve done this unless you pushed him into it - sorry, I’m not buying any of your crap about him blackmailing you. You plainly saw an opportunity and took advantage of him. Now for whatever reason you want out so you’re trying to make him look like the bad guy. Well, I won’t let you do that to him.”

With that she started to get up to leave but then she turned back to me and said in a low voice, “This may not be very Christian of me but I pray that someday someone will hurt you as badly as you have harmed my family.”

She hurried off, leaving me with the bill which I paid and then I headed home myself.

Well, at least I was pretty sure I wouldn’t have to worry about having sex with Mr. Eisenberg again. On the way home I didn’t know whether to cry - with joy or out of shame. I wondered if she really believed what she had told me or was she just rationalizing so she could address her husband’s infidelity and still keep their marriage intact? The looks she had given me, the sheer disgust in her tone of voice, and the nasty things she said about me stung even though I knew they were more her way of lashing out against her husband than me.

In any case it was done and over. I learned a number of valuable lessons from all this and hopefully, so did the Eisenbergs.