Dushan was sitting at his desk when he got a call from a number he didn’t recognize. He decided to let it go to his voice mail. He heard the beep and stiffened when he heard Ruth’s voice.
“Dushan, it’s Ruth. I’m calling from the boardroom. That’s why you don’t recognize the number. The reason for my call is to inform you that Choma visited me at my office. She threatened me and I had to ask her to leave. I don’t appreciate her dropping by and accusing me of harassing you and then threatening me if I don’t stay away from you. I want you to tell her to stay the hell away from me or the next time I will have security escort her off the premises. Call me if you want to discuss this any further. You have my number.”
The message ended. He stared at the flashing light before he erased the call. Was she serious or was this just a ploy to get in touch with him? He wasn’t going to call her. Instead, he was going to ask Chioma what transpired. He had ample reason to believe that Ruth’s version was not a reliable one. She was insanely jealous of Chioma because he had fallen in love with and married her. Ruth hated her more than she hated Evelyn. It was probably why she deliberately called her Choma instead of Chioma.
He sighed heavily. What couldn’t Ruth accept that he had moved on with his life? That it was over between them and that he wanted nothing more to do with her? Again he asked himself why he had gotten involved with her in the first place. Now I understand why God commands us not to commit adultery. It’s a selfish act and it hurts others. Although she had forgiven him, he would never forget the pain and anguish his unfaithfulness had caused Evelyn. She loved him and he had betrayed that love.
And what about Ruth’s husband? Didn’t the Bible teach about doing onto others and you would have them do onto you? How would he have felt if Evelyn had cheated on him? He would have been angry and his pride hurt. What could she possibly get from another man that she couldn’t get from him? Did Evelyn wonder that too? Did she wonder what he got with Ruth that he couldn’t have gotten with her? What hurt Evelyn was that he was throwing away what they had for a woman he didn’t even love.
Adultery. He never imagined that it would even be something he would do. He had been raised to believe that marriage was sacred and that a man and woman must be faithful to each other. Yet, he had allowed himself to become involved with Ruth and his affair had lasted for eight years, almost as long as his marriage to Evelyn.
After the divorce, he had begun to regret his affair with Ruth even though he didn’t end it. His conscience bothered him but he didn’t do what he knew he ought to do until that day when he met Chioma. She changed his life. After meeting her, he knew that he couldn’t continue seeing Ruth. The night before he decided to end the affair, he read in Proverbs, “One who commits adultery with a woman is devoid of sense; one who would destroy his soul-he will do it. He will find wounds and disgrace, and his reproach shall not be erased. For jealousy [shall arouse] the husband’s wrath, and he will not have pity on the day of vengeance.” If Ruth and he were living in Biblical times, according to the law, they would have been stoned to death. Ruth’s husband probably would have been the first one to cast the stones and who could blame him?
It was true. His reproach for what he had done to Evelyn and to Ruth’s husband weighed heavily on him, making him fear that it would always hang over him and ruin his chances of happiness with Chioma. How thankful he was that she didn’t hold his past against him and that she loved him in spite of it. She had told him that he had done the right thing in ending the affair and that God would forgive him if he went to him and asked him for forgiveness. When they watched the Gospel of John and he saw how Jesus acted toward the woman caught in adultery, he felt encouraged.
And now, he was happily married and wasn’t about to let Ruth and his sordid past with her ruin that happiness. He had to do something about Ruth and soon but first, he was going to ask Chioma about her visit to Ruth’s office.
Chioma was in the kitchen getting dinner when he arrived. After they hugged and kissed, he said, “I got a call from Ruth today.”
“She called you?”
“Yes. I didn’t speak to her, though. I didn’t recognize the number so I let the machine pick up.”
“What did she want?”
“She said that you went to her office and threatened her. She asked me to tell you to stay away from her or the next time she will have security escort you off the premises.”
“I might have known that she would use my visit as an excuse to call you. It’s too bad she did that before I got a chance to tell you myself. I went there to tell her to stay away from you. I didn’t threaten her. I warned her that if she didn’t leave you alone, we would take her to court for stalking and harassment. I warned her that she stood to lose a lot if she continued trying to make contact with you. I was calm and collected even when she refused to address me by my married name. I told her to think long and hard about what she stood to lose if she didn’t end her obsession with you. She got angry said that she isn’t obsessed with you but that she loves you. I told her that you didn’t love her and never did. When I asked her where were her pride and self-respect, that’s when she told me that I had taken up enough of her time.”
“I wish you hadn’t gone to see her, Honey. She could make trouble for you.”
“I’m not afraid of her, Dushan and I don’t like her sniffing around you. You’re my husband now. And if she can’t accept that, that’s just too bad but if she comes around here again or shows her face at your office, I will file a complaint against her for stalking and harassment.”
“Let me handle Ruth.”
“All right. I was just about to get dinner ready.”
“I’ll go and take a quick shower.” He hugged and kissed her again before leaving the kitchen.
He went into the bathroom, quickly stripped and stepped into the shower. After closing the door, he turned on the taps, adjusted the temperature of the water before turning on the shower faucet. The water felt good on his skin.
The door to the shower opened and Chioma stepped in. Dushan turned around. “I thought I would join you,” she said, running her hands down his chest and torso.
“I’m happy you did,” he murmured before he pulled her against him, the water beating down on his back. “Now you can make my fantasy of us making love in the shower come true.”
Sources: Chabad; Bible Info
Notes to Women 