Ten Years of Going Our Separate Ways in Marriage: His Regret Kicked In When I Asked for Divorce

"I had been married to Jack Wilson for ten years, but we had long since been living separate lives. He was deeply in love with his secretary, while I had my own string of young lovers. I thought this was how our lives would continue indefinitely. Until I met a young man who touched my heart. He didn't care about my money - he just wanted to marry me. I was moved. I went home and asked Jack for a divorce. That night, Jack smashed everything in the house. He grabbed me by the throat and snarled viciously: "Who gave you permission to take this seriously?!" 1 I was dozing on the couch late one evening when the doorbell rang. I shuffled over in my slippers to open the door. Jack stumbled in, reeking of alcohol. His young secretary was struggling to support him. When she looked up at me, her eyes flashed with disdain even as she flipped her bangs coyly. "Rachel, Mr. Wilson had too much to drink so I brought him home," she said. She emphasized the words "I brought him" before continuing in a wifely tone: "Rachel, why don't you make some hangover soup for Mr. Wilson? But don't add any longan - he doesn't like that." She gave a shy smile. "He always wants it when he's hungover in the morning." I had to stifle a laugh. This fresh college graduate's attempts to mark her territory were so clumsy that I couldn't even be bothered to spar with her. I took Jack from her arms and said coolly: "Alright, thank you. Do you need me to call you a cab home?" "Jack is so careless, making such a pretty young girl bring him home. Aren't you worried about going back alone? It could be dangerous." Olivia's face fell and she said nothing. I couldn't be bothered to engage further. I closed the door and kicked Jack, who was slumped on the couch. "Alright, you can stop pretending now." Jack didn't open his eyes, but his voice was completely sober: "Thanks. She's been clingy lately, always talking about marriage. I figured I'd give her the cold shoulder for a while." I said nothing. Olivia was different from the others. Over the years Jack and I had lived our separate lives, with women coming and going from his side. The longest any had stayed was three months. He was a born playboy, never willing to settle down with one person for long. At the time, I thought I would be the exception. But just three years into our marriage, he was already unable to resist the temptations outside. This Olivia was different though - she had been with him for two years now. It was clear Jack truly cared for her. With anyone else, he would have moved on long ago. But this time he was just trying to cool things off a bit. He clearly couldn't bear to let her go. In the past, I probably would have been crying and screaming, utterly heartbroken. Now I just said emotionlessly: "Jack, let's get a divorce." Jack cracked open an eye to look at me and snorted. "Rachel, what's gotten into you now? Didn't we agree to live our own lives? What are you on...