Since Marissa married Nick, she had found a home in his family — creating a special bond with Eric, her father-in-law. When Eric slips her a cryptic note pushed into a pack of gum, Marissa is left gasping. As she follows Eric’s instructions, she discovers all about her husband’s affair.
My father-in-law, Eric, is a man of few words and stern expressions in general. But he has always welcomed me into the family. Even when my husband, Nick, and I began dating fresh out of high school, I was always pleasantly surprised to get all the extra affection from Eric.
“You’re part of this family now, Marissa,” he would say whenever they invited me on family outings.
Once, at a picnic, Eric had gotten moody and refused to interact with anyone else. The family did test his patience with their constant whining — even Nick.
My husband was wonderful, but if something wasn’t up to his standards, he would loudly complain about it.
At that picnic, Nick and his cousin Nancy complained about the sun making their freckles stand out.
“What did they expect, Marissa?” Eric asked me as he shuffled a deck of cards for us to play with.
The rest of the afternoon went just like that — Nick and Nancy sitting on their phones, scrolling through social media and chasing away bees. Miranda, their mom, read the latest fashion magazine, and Eric and I entertained ourselves.
But that was our relationship, and I trusted him.
So, when he gave me the cryptic note wrapped into a pack of gum, I knew that he was being serious.
My father-in-law was a mechanic by trade, his hands constantly stained with grease and oils, but there was a gentleness to him that often went unnoticed.