Page 61 of First Date: Divorce
“There are those that say no one truly knows what goes on inside a marriage, unless it’s the two people involved … and sometimes they don’t either.”Melody paused, checking that they each smiled, which they did dutifully.“And I don’t expect to be an expert on your marriage when we’re done here.But I hope each of you will know a great deal more about it, each other, and yourselves.Let’s start at the beginning of your relationship— How did you meet?”
“My assistant introduced us,” Eric said.
Their eyes met.She saw amusement in his and felt her mouth lifting.
“Tell me more about that,” Melody invited.
Her attentive expression, indicated she’d picked up on their reactions, though she likely took their mutual amusement as mutual good memories.
That couldn’t hurt.In fact, it might help.
Sure, K.D.’s role was to make it clear she wanted a divorce.But if she made it too blatant from the start, that might raise suspicions about why they bothered to come.Also, having someone nudge her toward divorce could indicate whom to look at more closely.
She let Eric carry the narrative of how they met and started dating, contributing now and then.
“You found you had similar values?”Melody asked.
“No,” K.D.said, at the same time Eric said, “Some.”
The counselor didn’t miss that, but didn’t comment.
“Did you become intimate immediately?”
“No,” K.D.said, at the same time Eric said, “Pretty quickly.”
K.D.followed up with, “But not immediately,” sending him a look she thought Melody would be used to seeing between couples not getting along well.
“Sometimes becoming sexually intimate before a firm foundation’s been set for the relationship can complicate advancing emotionally.Sometimes we find it requires backing up and reconnecting.Going through those initial phases again, in a way.That’s why we strongly encourage couples to abstain while here.”
“We got married quickly, too.In addition to having sex pretty quickly.”K.D.added enough emphasis to the last two words to make them a quotation of Eric’s statement.
“But not immediately,” he murmured.
His expression remained neutral and K.D.thought Melody was trying to figure out how he’d meant that — as a dig at his supposed wife?
K.D.suspected it was a dig at himself.
Though whether because he thought his mistake was marrying Hilary too close to immediately or because he thought he should have spotted problems before they married…?
She cut off those questions.Not their reason for being here.
“I wonder,” she said with emphasis to Melody that indicated irritation at Eric’s contribution, “if the same concept applies to marriage as to sexual relations.Requiring backing up, returning to the beginning.”
He picked it up immediately.
“Backing up all the way to not being married, is that what you mean, K.D.?You said you’d give this a real try.Be open — for once.Doesn’t sound like it.”
“Let’s not explore that just yet,” Melody interposed.“It’s an interesting question, K.D., but let’s lay more groundwork before we get there.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
This counseling stuff was a lot harder than it looked from a distance, Eric thought.
Was it as hard for couples truly trying to save a marriage?They didn’t have to make things up as they went, nor remember what they’d made up previously.
On the other hand, real couples were trying to save a marriage, while he wasn’t.His to Hilary was deader than dead and the supposed one to K.D.didn’t exist.
He fielded another question from Melody with a one-word answer, thanks to Pauline’s questionnaire and drilling.
