“How Dare He?” A Story of a Crack in a Marriage
“That’s it, I’ve had enough!” Robert slammed his fist on the table, making the china plates rattle. “I never want to see her here again!”
“Are you serious right now?” Emily glared at him from under her brow, her voice shaking with anger. “In case you forgot, I live here too, and I have every right to invite whoever I want!”
“For as long as you live here,” he snapped.
“Oh, is that how it is?”
“I’ve said all I need to,” Robert shot back, standing so abruptly that his chair toppled over. He stormed out of the kitchen, slamming the door behind him.
Emily was left alone, her heart pounding in her temples. His words stung like a slap. “For as long as you live here”… How dare he?
Sophie had been her best friend since childhood. They’d grown up together in Brighton, sheltering from the rain under the same umbrella, sleeping over at each other’s houses, pulling each other out of scrapes they could now barely recall without laughing. And now Robert expected her to cut Sophie out of her life?
Why? Just because Sophie wasn’t married? Because she didn’t bury herself at home with stews and dusting but actually went on dates, laughed, and lived her life? So what if she accepted gifts from suitors? It was her life, her rules.
Emily had told Robert all about their girlish escapades. He used to laugh along! Now suddenly he wanted to forbid it? On what grounds?
She marched into the living room, determined to settle this once and for all.
“Robert, we’re not done. Explain to me—what on earth do you have against Sophie? What did she ever do to you?”
“To me?” He scoffed. “As if! Just keep her out of my house!”
“Explain.”
“You really don’t get it?” He jumped up as if ready to bolt outside in his slippers. “Your precious Sophie is shallow. Changes men like socks. Lives off their money. And you accept it. You’re friends with her. Which means you approve.”
Emily blinked in disbelief.
“Robert, have you lost your mind? I love you, I don’t want anyone else!”
“Oh, sure. ‘Love you, can’t live without you.’ But deep down, you’re jealous—of Sophie, and of your own sister, Charlotte!”
Emily flared up.
“What does Charlotte have to do with this?”
“She shouldn’t step foot in this house either!”
Emily froze. It all made sense now. Charlotte, her younger sister, had once been caught up in a scandal. She’d spent years with a man, hoping for a future, only to find out he was married with two kids. When the truth came out, the family was in uproar. Everyone condemned Charlotte—until the man moved away with his family… and left her a flat. Small but right in the city centre.
Suddenly, the judgment stopped. Some even praised him—”Well, at least he did the decent thing.” Of course, Emily had told Robert everything, and clearly, she hadn’t hidden her admiration.
“Well? Say something!” Robert barked, snapping her out of her daze.
“I’ll say this—Charlotte’s an adult. She decides who she’s with and what gifts she accepts.”
“Oh, absolutely! Got herself a flat, and she’s happy. But don’t tell me you’re not jealous. Your eyes lit up when you told me about it!”
“That’s ridiculous. Imagine if you had a mate who was always chasing women, wining and dining them. And then your brother, a father of two, suddenly gifts one of them a flat. How would you feel?”
“I don’t care. It’s their life, not mine,” Emily said quietly.
“Good. But they—Sophie and Charlotte—aren’t welcome in this house anymore.”
Emily didn’t answer. She walked to the bathroom, turned on the tap, and cried—out of despair, helplessness, because the man she loved didn’t just refuse to listen, he judged her. Judged her by scraps of stories, by his own twisted assumptions. He didn’t see the woman beside him, who stood by him, cooked for him, listened, lived with him. All he saw was a reflection of other people’s choices.
What now? Divorce? Or swallow her pride and betray those who’d always been there? It felt like there were no good options. But the thought of betraying herself—that was the worst of all.
