Thou Shalt Not(101)

“Oh, well that’s good.”

“Yeah. He can’t find out, Luke.”

“Well, you won’t have to worry about me telling him.” I laughed.

“Are we okay, Luke?”

“Yeah, April. We are. Don’t worry about it. I understand.”

“Thank God. I couldn’t sleep last night. I didn’t know how you would handle it.”

The bell rang loudly, and it was time for students.

April stood up.

“Are you going to make the dinner tonight?” she asked.

“Yeah,” I said. “I will be there. Holly will probably come with me.”

April mouthed the name “Holly” as if trying to figure out who that was. Then her eyes got big.

“The girl from your driveway?”

“Yeah,” I said. “Holly.”

“Luke,” she said, turning toward the door. “You can do better for yourself.”

And with that, she left the room. I hated her right at that moment.

I knew Holly was sleeping, but I sent her a message detailing the entire exchange anyway, minus the part about me being able to do better.

We talked about it on the way to the grocery store to pick up cups and soda for the dinner.

“If he does actually know,” Holly said, “he might try to kill you tonight, FYI.”

“Yes, I’m well aware of that,” I said. “Maybe we should have one last fuck before he does.”

“No,” she said. “I want you to die fuckless.”



Whether he knew or not, the fact remained that I did have sex with his wife. If he knew, he wasn’t going to be happy and I would suffer the consequences of my actions. If he didn’t know and never found out, I was still stomping all over a bunch of those Thou Shalt Nots. So, cosmic punishment was also a possibility. But, I made the choice, and I would take what came from it.



“I’m curious to meet her husband though. She will probably try to keep me away from him. I have a feeling I can make things really uncomfortable for her.”

Holly’s eyes were staring off into the distance, likely entertaining random scenarios in her head in which to make April squirm.

We showed up to Principal West’s house a few minutes after 6, fashionably late as always. Holly hated being late to anything. It was something I liked about her. But, I also liked showing her that being two minutes late wasn’t going to cause the party to cease from happening.

I didn’t see April’s car, but I saw a sports car that was not in the price range of anyone else on staff. Marco’s.

“They are here,” I said as I parked further up the street.

“Why am I so excited for this?” Holly said, clearly kind of giddy.

“Cause you are a little sadistic,” I reminded her.

“Oh yeah!” She flashed a big smile.

Mark’s house wasn’t very big, but he did all his entertaining in the backyard, which he had turned into a little island paradise. He had tiki torches lining his yard long before they became a staple in every backyard on the planet.

Tonight, the torches extended out along the side of the house, making a distinct pathway for everyone to follow. We obeyed the torches’ direction and turned the corner to a sound of loud “Luke’s here” and “The drinks are finally here!”

Holly glared at me, having already reminded me that you shouldn’t show up late when you were bringing beverages.

I put my arm around Holly and pulled her close. There were a lot of wide-eyed greetings from colleagues who thought my love life was non-existent. I began introducing her to everyone, while spotting April and Marco under the makeshift cabana where all the food was being set up. Quite a few people were gathered around them, basking in Marco’s famous glow.

I thought it was funny the way Landry had reacted to Marco when he saw him in the hallway, and the men and women I worked with at Lakefront reacted the same way. No matter what Marco had done on the field, he seemed to get a pass when out in the “real world” because he was a celebrity.

The World Series ring he had won was flashing brightly on his left hand, and I could hear the literal “Ooos” and “Ahhs.”

Mark came over to grab the drinks from us.

“Give me those,” he said. “Let’s break them open.”

“Here you are, sir.”

I introduced him to Holly.

“You’re a brave woman, associating with this character.” He laughed.

“You’re telling me,” she replied quickly, causing Mark to laugh loudly again.

“Come here, guys, you should meet April’s husband.”

Mark had no idea I had met him the day before, but we followed him over to the cabana anyway.