Edited by Barney R. Messed with by me. All mistakes are mine.

After 25 plus years of marriage, she said she settled for me.

I am Cpt. (ret) Albert White, 51, and married to Constance Seymore-White, 48. I don’t know why she wanted the hyphen, but I did not really mind either.

I am a medically retired military officer, retired for a really stupid reason, I was injured while playing softball for the post team at the inter-service games. An infantry officer with a pronounced limp isn’t what the generals wanted. I was educated in English Literature and American Military History on an Army ROTC scholarship. I was and am also, an accomplished author of romantic novels (bodice rippers) under the pen name Violet Claymore and westerns under my own name. So far I have accumulated a sizable savings and investment portfolio.

Constance (Connie) is still working, and even she can’t spend money fast enough to decrease our wealth. She is an administrative assistant of a senior partner of a large accounting and auditing firm.

We met at a USO dance when I was chaperoning the new recruits. Connie was there to do the same for the young ladies. We got to talking, and she told me she was the oldest daughter of an Army Lt. Colonel.

We dated for several months. I was transferred, and her dad went to the same base. I asked her to marry me. And she said yes.

We got married after my first book was published. I was still in the Army and 26 years old and a newly promoted 1st Lt.

She was 23, and a recent community college graduate with an associate’s degree in accounting and accounts management. She had not started working yet.

I was promoted to Captain, got injured, and discharged. We moved back to my home town, and into the house, I inherited from my grandfather.

She was my business manager while I wrote my first five books, and then decided we should start a family. We tried for over two years, and then went to a fertility specialist. It was determined that Connie was not producing viable eggs, even though she was having periods.

She went into a deep depression. I told her to see a doctor for treating the depression as there was nothing we could do about her infertility. She did, and got much better, nearly back to normal. Once she was OK, she decided to take some refresher courses and get a job.

I continued to pump out books at the rate of three romances and one western every six months. Connie worked and completed her Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Management at night school.

She decided that she wanted to work outside of the house. With her new degree, she quickly found a position with an accounting firm in the city.

Over the next several years, I hired college students majoring in education to proofread and critique my books. I hired young ladies for the romances (bodice rippers) and young men for the westerns. After she graduated, I hired a nice young lady named Elaine Collins for my full-time proofreader and used others for critical opinions.

Connie never liked Elaine and made that fact very clear. I decide that I didn’t care, but to ease the tension at home, I communicated with Elaine by e-mail only.

I was required to make frequent trips to New York to meet with my publisher. On one of those trips, I found out that a movie production company wanted one of my westerns for a movie. They also wanted me to write the script. When I explained that while I had never tried to write a script, my assistant had studied drama, and had already converted some of my other novels into scripts for her college classes. They decided to hire both of us to write the script. They were throwing buckets of money at me for the movie rights. Then they threw satchels of money at me and a similar but slightly greater amount to Elaine to write the script. I did make sure that Elaine got more than me and all the credit as the head scriptwriter. I had no real clue where to start.

Elaine was ecstatic and Connie was pissed. Because of her job, Connie couldn’t accompany us. Elaine and I would have to work together to write the script. We were also required to fly to Los Angeles for at least two weeks at a time. E-mail just wouldn’t work.

Because of the friction caused by Connie’s animosity, we rented a small office in our town to work together on the script. It was a couple of miles away from the house in the business district.

Things were going great. The studio accepted the script, purchased options on three more westerns, and two of my romances. The options insisted the scriptwriting team remain the same. There was one major fly in the ointment, Elaine and I had to go to California to work during the filming to do daily rewrites. More money and a producer credit for each of us, as well as a seriously pissed off wife.

Connie was an iceberg when we told her about California. “I suppose you’re going to fuck your slut Elaine while you’re out there.”

Elaine heard her and walked over and with all of her anger slapped Connie so hard her glasses flew off.

“I’m not a slut, Albert has never even tried to hold my hand, much less make love to me. You are such a jealous, crazy bitch that you are in the process of throwing away the best thing that has happened to your miserable self-pitying life. Grow up, Bitch.” Then she walked away.

“You are wrong on so many levels Connie. I love you, but your jealousy and fear have indeed damaged our marriage. I am going to get a suite at the extended-stay hotel by the office. Don’t call me until you get your head out of your ass and realize that Elaine could be a good friend to you but you screwed it up.”

With that, I walked into my home office and grabbed my laptop, my notes, and some of my things that I used for inspiration. Then I went into the bedroom and packed two suitcases with my clothes.

As I was leaving I stopped and looked at Connie. “I have never cheated; I have never put my work before you; I have never denigrated you in front of others. I love you, but right now I don’t like you very much.”

I continued; “We have to leave for Hollywood next Wednesday. If I haven’t heard from you by then, please find somewhere to live. This is my house, and until I feel welcome here with you in it, you have to go.”

She just hung her head and walked away.

We departed for California. We were there for a little over a week when my mother-in-law called and asked what I said to her Connie that caused her to move out.

“I told her to get over her stupidity, jealousy, and piss-poor attitude or leave. It seems she decided to leave. Tell her I love her, but I really, really do not like the woman she has become.” I continued; “She accused me of having sex with my partner in this movie deal. Elaine was so pissed she slapped Connie. I wanted to, but my dad told me to never hit a lady. While she is not acting like a lady, I did not hit her, I just gave her a choice and a warning.” I told her goodbye and ended the call. I turned my phone off.

The movie shoot went well, and while there were some script changes, we got it done in less than six weeks. The editing took a couple more months and we had to return for minor reshoot script changes.

I had hired a security company to keep watch on the house, and also had the locks changed.

While I was there, I never had another call from home.

We arrived back at the airport. Elaine told me that she had had enough of the fake people in Hollywood for a year or two.

I drove to the security company and collected the new house keys.

When I got to the empty house, there was a note taped on the door. It was from Connie.

...

Al,

I am sorry that I have been such a bitch. I decided to take a long hard look at my life and attitude. I did not like what I found.

I am seeing a psychiatrist and trying to do what is necessary to change. I know you said that you didn’t like me, well I don’t like me right now either.

I am going to stay with my mother, at least for a while. I really do want to come back home, but I will not until I am sure I can be a loving wife.